Mariestads fängelse, Prison complex in Mariestad, Sweden

Mariestads fängelse is a closed cell prison built 1842–1848 to drawings by Carl Fredrik Hjelm, with 102 cells in a plastered building at the mouth of the Tidan in Vänern. Its lime-white render gave it the nickname Vita duvan, the White Dove; the building was later painted yellow. It closed in 2010 and has been a listed building since 1993.

Built 1842–1848 to plans by Carl Fredrik Hjelm after the 1840–1841 prison reform, it replaced a 1749 stone jail in Trädgårn. Women were held from the 1890s until a 1902 fire; from 1917 inmates worked the 400-hectare Marieholm estate. It closed in 2010 and was listed in 1993.

Locals called the white-plastered building "Vita duvan" (the White Dove). In the 19th century inmates pasted matchboxes and prepared oakum, and from the 1890s women were also held here for about a decade. The prison closed in 2010 and has been a listed building since 1993.

The former prison stands by the outlet of the Tidan into Lake Vänern, next to the police building and the remand centre. It is a listed building since 1993 and closed in 2010, so visits depend on the current owner; a new owner planned a hostel called Waterside Mariestad in 2015. Check opening arrangements before travelling.

The prison closed in 2010, making it one of Sweden's oldest facilities still in use at the time. Locals called it "Vita duvan" (the White Dove) for its white lime plaster, and the name stuck even after the building was later painted yellow.