Amund Ringnes

Who was Amund Ringnes?

Amund Ringnes was a Norwegian businessman, brewery owner and patron.

He was born in Krødsherad, Buskerud, the son of Anders Knudsen Ringnes, farmer, and his wife Maren Amundsdatter. He grew up at the Ringnes farm, and commenced working at Akers Mekaniske Verksted in 1860. He left Akers Mek. Verksted in 1865, and was employed by the brewery Christiania Bryggeri. In 1876, he founded Ringnes & Compani brewery with his brother Ellef Ringnes and the businessman Axel Heiberg. It was the eighth brewery in Christiania, and later had its name changed to Ringnes Bryggeri.

The Ringnes brewery became successful, and Amund Ringnes and his brother became benefactors in Christiania. They invested in the construction of the Holmenkollen Line and sanatoriums in the Holmenkollen area. They also sponsored Fridtjof Nansen's Fram expedition, which they at one point led together with businessman Axel Heiberg and shipowner Thomas Fearnley. The explorer Otto Sverdrup's 1898–1902 Fram expedition also received financial support from the two brothers; he named two discovered islands after them: Amund Ringnes Island and Ellef Ringnes Island.