Anker (noble family)

[1][2] The family came to Norway's capital Oslo with Erich Olufsen Ancher (1644–1699), who was a representative for merchant Peter Bahrum in Lübeck.

In Christiania, which was Oslo's name in those days, Erich Ancher became a wealthy trader, and through his marriage with Maren Lauritzdatter, he entered the city's class of rich merchants.

This included the magnificent Paléet townhouse in Oslo which was bequeathed to the Norwegian royal family in 1805.

The Anker Entailed Estate (Norwegian: Det ankerske Fideikomiss) in Oslo went bankrupt in 1819, and the estate complex related to Bogstad Main Farm and Nordmarka was through women inherited by the families Wedel-Jarlsberg, Løvenskiold, and Egeberg.

Before the ennoblement, some family members used arms displaying an anchor under two stars, and above the helm the allegorical character Spes between two hart horns.