The Hanseatic Museum occupies one of the original Bryggen trading houses — the timber-framed building at Finnegården that dates to 1702, after the great fire of that year. Inside, it recreates the cramped world of the German merchants who controlled Bergen's fish trade for four centuries. The bed closets, the counting rooms, the lack of heating (fire risk was too great), and the strict hierarchy of the Hanseatic guild are all evoked with period furnishings.
The associated Schøtstuene — the guild meeting rooms where the merchants held their assemblies and occasional dinners — are in a nearby building and are included in the ticket. This is the best museum in Bergen for understanding what made the city important, and why Bryggen looks the way it does.