The project focuses on portraits representing Iron-Owing-Men from Falun and the area around Stora Kopparberget in Dalarna from Sweden’s great power-period, which, until the caving in of the mine in 1687 was a period of expansion for Falun. There are ca. ten painted portraits in the collection of Stora Kopparberg in Falun and about as many in the churches and manors of Dalarna. An inventory might yield some more. All in all it will be quite a small study, but since it is one of the first in Sweden that deals with a chosen group in society, it might have some interesting results also in a wider, international context. In the 17th century it was still mainly royalty, the high nobility and the priesthood that had their portraits painted, something which makes these portraits especially fascinating. When discussed in earlier research, it was in the light of the artist and whom it represented that was in focus. By studying them in the light of modern theories on portraits, the study should be able to present new and interesting knowledge on the Iron-Owing-Men and contribute with a deeper perspective of the structure of society in The Great-Power-Period. It may also contribute to an understanding about how these men saw themselves and their place in society.