“Science, literature and peace offer different paths to tackle today’s wicked problems. But they all remind us that it is not blind destiny that decides on our future as humanity”
Professor Astrid Söderbergh Widding, Chair of the Nobel Foundation, in her opening speech at the award ceremony 2024.
The Nobel Day begins at 16:00 CET with the prestigious Nobel Prize award ceremony held at the Stockholm Concert Hall. The grand event celebrates this year’s laureates before an audience of approximately 1,560 guests, including dignitaries and families. The ceremony features presentations highlighting each Nobel Prize, interspersed with several musical performances. Swedish Television has been broadcasting the ceremony to the public since 1959, making it a highly anticipated annual tradition.
Alfred Nobel’s 1895 testament established the Nobel Prizes and the award ceremonies, using his fortune to reward those who have most benefitted human progress. These events provide a platform to recognise and celebrate outstanding individuals and their contributions to the world. The laureates’ acceptance speeches and the discussions surrounding their work offer insights into the future of science and society.
The first award ceremonies took place on December 10, 1901, on the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death. The Nobel Foundation organises the Nobel Prize festivities in Stockholm, which serve primarily as an academic celebration of science and literature.
The prizes are awarded in two separate ceremonies: one for Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Literature, and another for Economic Sciences. At the Nobel Prize award ceremony in the Stockholm Concert Hall, the laureates deliver speeches and present their discoveries or works. Afterwards, King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden hands each laureate a diploma and a medal. This year, the prize sum is €924,000 (SEK 11 million) for each category. In the case of multiple laureates per category, the prize money is divided equally between them.
Since 1969, Sweden’s Central Bank has awarded an additional prize at the same ceremony: the Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel, which carries the same prize sum as the other categories.
The Nobel Prize Banquet, a grand celebration held at Stockholm City Hall, follows the traditional award ceremony and welcomes about 1,250 guests, including volunteer students. Apart from a few exceptions, Stockholm City Hall has hosted the Banquet since 1930, which has become a popular televised event known for combining formal award presentations with entertainment, interviews, and reports on the laureates’ work. The Banquet helps make scientific discoveries more accessible to the general public.
The evening programme follows tradition and begins at 19:00 CET with the Swedish Royal Family and other guests of honour processing down the grand stairway into the Blue Hall. Before this, the Royal Family meets the guests of honour in the Prince’s Gallery of the City Hall.
In addition to the Nobel Prize laureates and their families, the King and Queen and other members of the Royal Family of Sweden are guests of honour at both the award ceremony and the Banquet. Once all guests are seated, the organisers reveal the menu, which supports culinary innovation and sustainability.
Receiving an invitation to the Nobel Banquet is a great honour, even for non-laureates, and most invitees do indeed attend. The guest list includes representatives from the Swedish government and parliament as well as international guests, particularly those representing the sciences and cultural life. Swedish guests typically participate in Nobel Prize-related events, support the sciences through donations, or contribute to the Nobel Foundation and its mission in other meaningful ways.
The Nobel Peace Prize plays a key role in spotlighting current global challenges. The Norwegian Nobel Committee awards this prize at Oslo City Hall in Norway. The Chairman of the Committee presents the award to the laureates in the presence of King Harald V of Norway, along with members of the government, parliament, and other officials.
Floral Magic Since 1905, Sanremo has paid homage to Alfred Nobel, who spent his final years in the Italian city. In collaboration with Regione Liguria, the City of Sanremo, and the Chamber of Commerce of Riviera di Liguria, the city donates flowers each year to decorate the Stockholm Concert Hall and Stockholm City Hall during the Nobel Prize festivities.
Last year, florists decorated the Blue Hall in three shapes, and they placed the Tree of Knowledge on the Table of Honour. As always, the organisers focused on sustainability. They reused all structures from previous years to ensure a healthy, low-material-use approach. Sanremo gifted almost 25,000 flower stems, including a wide variety of leafy greens and both classic and newer varieties.
