The Iceland History, Sagas and Archaeological
Excavations Tour.
Like most people who are interested in
the history of Iceland are aware of, this land was christianized in the year 1000
which, as a result, made the year 2000 a very special year of celebrations for
the 1000th Anniversary of Christianity in Iceland (along with Hungary which was
christianized in the same year). On this occasion, the Government of Iceland decided
to establish a special and important fund, to be devoted to the study of Christianity
in Iceland, and especially to archeological investigations of the most important
early bishopric-, church- and monastery sites in Iceland. Grants from this important
fund, which amounts to 500 million Icelandic kronas, will be awarded over the
next five years, and, with the first of them having been granted and some very
tangible results having already been obtained, a virtual revolution in the field
of archeological investigations has taken place in the country, and a sort of
Golden Age is now reigning in this highly interesting field which had been starved
for funds for so many years and decades. Development in this field was also hampered
for many years by the lack of trained local archeologists in the country, with
no formal archeological training or studies being available within the country
itself, and the few students who were keen on studying it having to go abroad
for their diplomas. Starting in 2003 , the first archeological seminars were conducted
at the University of Iceland and with these new recruits in addition to the dozen
or so graduates who have returned recently from studies abroad, it's a pretty
safe bet that we can look forward to a bright future in this field.
In
addition, a number of foreign archaeologists, universities and colleges have now
suddenly shown a new (or more to the point renewed) interest in undertaking archaeological
excavations in Iceland, with about half a dozen such independent excavations having
been carried out during the summer of 2003 and with those added to the number
of Icelandic excavations, the total came to almost 30 digs for that summer, a
number which nobody could even have dreamt of achieving only a few years ago.
The main purpose of the Tour on offer here is to render it possible for
the general public interested in Icelandic History in general and in Archaeology
in particular to observe and take part in this new adventure, to become familiar
with the historic places in question, and to observe the scientists at work and
(with their kind permission which is usually easily obtained) ask questions and
even see and be present when a "new" artifact comes to light for the first time
after hundreds of years in the ground, an artifact which may even shed a new and
unexpected light on the past history of Iceland.
Day 1.
We start this day around 8:30 a.m. by a city tour of Reykjavík, whose main
focus will be the old city centre, where a recent archaeological dig in the oldest
street in town, the Aðalstræti (Main Street) has unearthed what is probably the
remains of the settlement farm of the first settler in Reykjavík, the Viking Ingólfur
Arnarson, who arrived in Iceland from Norway around the year 874 AD. Thereafter,
the tour will take us to the Þjóðminjasafn Íslands (National Museum of Iceland),
which will presumably have reopened (fingers crossed) after a period of 4 years
renovation with brand new displays on show. We will also pay a visit to the Þjóðmenningarhús (National
Culture House) at Hverfisgata, where a brand new show also of the old vellum (veal
skin) manuscripts of the Icelandic Sagas opened in October 2002. After lunch
in a cozy old restaurant in downtown Reykjavík, we will head out of town by way
of the valley of Mosfellsdalur and head directly for the farm of Hrísbrú, following
in the footsteps of Egill Skallagrímsson, the hero of Egils-Saga, who spent his
last days there, and where American archaeologist Jesse Byock, of UCLA, has been carrying out successful excavations
for the last 2 - 3 years. Next, our route takes us across the moor of Mosfellsheiði,
and soon the great lake of Þingvallavatn comes
into view. We will head straight for the best vantage point at the edge of Almannagjá
fissure, where we will admire the view, and afterwards, we'll walk down the fissure
towards Lögberg, the old Speaker's Rock of the old Icelandic Parliament, the Alþingi
(General Assembly) whose sessions took place here for almost 900 years. We will
study some of the numerous camps of the parliamentarians nearby, and finish our
walk near the old church and farm at Þingvellir
where an archaeological investigation started last summer, the first one in decades
in this extremely important location, i.e. the founding place of the world's first
parliamentary institution.
Dinner and overnight at Þingvellir or nearby.
Day 2.
The next day, our route will take
us across another desolate moor called Lyngdalsheiði towards the lake Laugarvatn and picturesque village of the same name, and
proceed from there to the county of Biskupstungur where we will first visit the
"settlement farm" of Ketilbjörn Gamli at Mosfell with it's quaint little black
church before crossing the Brúará river and heading for Skálholt, where Ketilbjörn's
son Teitur first settled and where later, his grandson Gissur Hvíti (the White)
introduced Christianity into the country and still later, his great-grandson Ísleifur
founded the first bishopric in Iceland in 1056. First of all, we will start by
visiting the beautiful modern cathedral which was erected here in 1956, before
proceeding to the cathedral's crypt, where there is a permanent photographic exhibition
of the archeological excavation under the leadership of dr. Kristján Eldjárn,
which took place here prior to the construction of the cathedral, and the sensational
discovery of the stone sarcophagus, also on show here, of bishop Páll Jónsson
who died and was buried here in the year 1211. Outside, we will visit the recently
started excavations which have been undertaken in order to determine
the size and shape of the village which surrounded the cathedral in medieval times.
After lunch at Skálholt, our journey will take us northwards, alongside
the country's longest river, the Þjórsá, where halfway up the valley, when passing
the farm of Minna-Núpi, birthplace of one of the earliest pioneers in the field
of archaeology in Iceland Brynjólfur Jónsson, our minds will wander back to the
early days, when, as in so many other countries around the world, the prime importance
was put on discovering spectacular or sensational objects and little or no attention
was paid to the lesser objects or details which could reveal how our ancestors
really lived.
Arriving in the valley of Þjórsárdalur, which was devastated
by a tremendous volcanic eruption in Iceland's most active volcano, the Hekla, in 1104, and
where the remains of roughly 20 ruined farms have been located, we will proceed
directly to one of them, the Stöng, which was excavated by the same dr Kristján
Eldjárn in 1939. Thereafter, in the close vicinity of Stöng, we will visit a present
day reconstruction of it, a so-called "hypothesis house", named "Þjóðveldisbærinn", the first of it's kind in Iceland,
built in 1974 as a commemoration to the 1100th anniversary of the settlement of
Iceland. This will give us the first real feeling of what life may have been like
in those early Viking Age times in Iceland.
Finally, we will pass to the
north and around the mountain of Búrfell, before heading southwards along the
Land county road, and hopefully getting a good view of the infamous volcano Hekla
(last eruption in February 2000) along the way, we will seek food and shelter
in a good farm accommodation somewhere in the Land region.
Day
3.
Since we now find ourselves in the middle of the zone where
there is the highest concentration of the manmade sandstone caves in Iceland,
(there is well over a hundred of them, most of them quite small, but others quite
big and impressive), caves which some people quite firmly believe that they precede
the admitted age of settlement of Iceland (AD 874), we can hardly pass through
this area without visiting at least some of them. The most accessible caves are
those situated at the farm of Ægissíða, in the vicinity of the village Hella,
but those at Hellrum, Efri-Gegnishólum, and others (one cave has a wall which
is adorned by an ancient crucifix of the so-called "latin" type which was common
in Western Europe from AD 500 - 1000), can also be visited. After lunch at
the Hvolsvöllur cafeteria, we will head east, passing by Seljalandsfoss waterfall
and the region of Eyjafjöll, until we turn off the main South Iceland highway,
heading towards the coastline until we reach the old farm of Stóra-Borg, where,
during the last two decades, an important archaeological investigation, initiated
and directed by museum director Þórður Tómasson at Skógar,
has been conducted, mostly near the old cemetery and the site of the Saga-Age
farmstead, which the sea was starting to seriously damage or even destroy. After
this "in site" visit, we will naturally head for the Folk Museum at Skógar, where
some of the artifacts recovered at Stóru Mörk are on display, and usually the
master himself, Mr. Þórður is on hand and ready to explain the findings and objects
in his museum to the inquisitively minded visitor. Still we will be heading
eastwards, and soon we'll be catching a glimpse of the southernmost cliffs in
Iceland, the Cape Dyrhólaey and enter the district of Reynishverfi, where again,
we'll head towards the sea, both to admire the magnificence of the North Atlantic surf at the beach near Reynisdrangar Rocks,
and to to take a walk to the ridge of Reynisholt, near the farm Garðar, in order
to observe the easternmost manmade caves in south-Iceland, which can be found
there. After a short stopover in the village of Vík í Mýrdal, we'll cross over
the sandy desert of Mýrdalssandur, and through the impressive Eldhraun lavafield,
until we reach the village of Kirkjubæjarklaustur, for dinner and an overnight
stay.
Day 4.
The settlement farm of Kirkjubæjarklaustur,(literally
The Church Farm Cloister"), holds a unique position among such places in Iceland
since it was never in the hands of heathens: the first settler was the Christian
Ketill fíflski (the Idiot), and there are even persistent rumours that prior to
his arrival, the place was inhabited by the so-called "papar" or papists which
most people presume to have been hermits of Irish or Celtic origin. Later, a Benedictine
convent for nuns was established at Kirkjubæjarklausur which subsisted here until
the Reformation when it was abolished along with all other convents or monasteries
in Iceland. The site of the old convent was of course long forgotten and no
visible traces of it to be seen anywhere on the surface of the land. Last year,
however, an archaeological investigation under the leadership of Chief
Archeologist Bjarni Einarsson was started, and he quickly turned the focus of
his search towards the old farmstead mound of Klaustur, with the result that quickly
some artifacts were unearthed (an altar-stone) which seemed to strongly indicate
that the convent site has now been found. Here, we will observe the archaeologists
at work at close quarters, familiarize ourselves with the tumultuous history of
Kirkjubæjarklaustur, the huge volcanic eruptions which time and again have threatened
to lay it to waste, the lava flows surrounding it, the "Fire- Priest" Jón Steingrímsson,
and finally visit the strange "church floor" basaltic pillar rock formation nearby.
After this thorough visit to Klaustur, as it is familiarly known, we will take
leave of the historic places in South Iceland, and head inland over the desolate
mountain trail of Fjallbaksleið nyrðri, with a stopover in the picturesque mountain
oasis Landmannalaugar, and then shift over to the main North-south
mountain trail called Sprengisandsleið, and spend the night in a mountain cabin
at Nýjidalur, near the geological centre of Iceland.
Day 5.
We set off early the next morning from this barren place,
pursuing our trip northwards on the Sprengisandsleið, and when the trail finally starts to
head downhill, and we pass by the desolate lake Íshólsvatn, now surrounded by
sand dunes instead of lush greenery a little over a century ago, we will try and
remember the numerous farms and settlements in this area which fell victim to
the massive erosion and sandstorms which laid it to waste. Paradoxically, however,
these forces of destruction have also laid bare a number archaeological remains
and artifacts which would probably never have been discovered otherwise. Next,
we will admire the beautiful Aldeyjarfoss waterfall, surrounded by basaltic columns,
and then head down the valley of Bárðardalur, at the mouth of which we will come
to the Goðafoss waterfall,
and turn our thoughts back to Þorgeir Ljósvetningagoði, who played a key role
in bringing about a peaceful conversion to Christianity at the Alþing in the year
1000. After lunch, we will turn eastwards in direction of the lake Mývatn, and head
straight for the farm of Hofsstaðir where important archaeological investigations
have been pursued for the past few years, and are now coming to an end. Their
main purpose, as in all the other places in Iceland where the name "Hof" (The
heathen equivalent to a church) appears in the place name, has been to find irrefutable
proof that heathen worship of the pagan gods (Odin, Thor, Freyja, Baldur, etc)
took place there. But in spite of finding a long, massive Saga-Age building, the
researchers were thwarted in their efforts, since no such proof was forthcoming,
as it hasn't so far anywhere in Iceland or elsewhere in Scandinavia for that matter.
After our inspection of Hofsstaðir, we will next head for the farm of Baldursheimur
where the best preserved Viking Age tomb of a warrior so far discovered in Iceland
was found in 1860. Nearby, we will visit the old farm at Grænavatn, which is a
sort of transitional building between the old style of construction in Iceland
and the modern style buildings. However, this building is both in an urgent need
of repairs, in order to prevent it's further decay, and for access to it to be
improved (rubbish removed) so that visitors can visit it conveniently both inside
and outside. The rest of the day will be spent admiring the natural wonders
and beauty of the lake Mývatn area, before seeking overnight shelter in that area.
Day 6.
We leave the Mývatn area the next
morning and head northwards, across the Hólasandur desert, which also used to
be lush green but was devastated by a tremendous erosion in the first half of
the 20th century. Of late, however, some serious steps have been undertaken in
order to reclaim the lost land. Our journey will soon take us to one of the most
prominent places in Northern Iceland for centuries, the manorGrenjaðarstaður where
we will first visit the old turf style farm (one of only 6 preserved in Iceland)
as well as the Folk Museum and, in the churchyard, examine a runic tombstone which
is also one of only a handful to have been preserved in the country. Afterwards,
we will head up the valley of Laxárdalur, until we reach another turf style farm,
at Þverá, much less opulent but nevertheless very pretty, and very handsomely
restored in 1995 by the Icelandic Directorate of Historic Buildings and Antiquities.
Next, we will head west across the beautiful salmon fishing river Laxá í Aðaldal,
and, arriving in the county of Kinn , we will not miss an opportunity to take
a look at some modern antiques, by paying a visit to the Classic Cars Museum at
Yztafelli, established and run by the local farmer. Therafter, back on the main
highway near the lake Ljósavatns, we will head for the forest of Vaglaskógur,
which can be regarded as a sort of Icelandic forest antiques, since it was very
nearly lost at about the same time when the turf farms were being demolished.
The shapely old bridge across the river Fnjóskárbrú is also a sort of antique
as far as roads and bridges in Iceland are concerned since it is fast reaching
the ripe old age of 100 which is the official age for antique constructions in
Iceland.
Having crossed the mountain pass of Vaðlaheiði, we will shortly
arrive in the main town of the North i.e. Akureyri, where during the traditional
city tour, we will visit the Botanical Gardens, the Minjasafnið museum, where
there is a good collection of interesting artifacts. But we do not intend to stay
long in Akureyri, but head straight for the archeological digs at Gásar, the most important
trading place on the fjord of Eyjafjörður, and for the whole of Northern Iceland
for centuries. Here, at the mouth of the river Hörgá, was a natural harbour which
was used from shortly after the settlement age, until the early 16th century,
until the harbour silted up and became unusable. Under the guidance of a Minjasafn employee, we will be taken around the digs,
and given a thorough explanation of the range and scope of these investigations, which only started
in the summer of 2003, and will last almost certainly for years or even decades
to come.
After the visit to Gásar, we will relax in the jacuzzi of a farm
accommodation in nearby Árskógsströnd district or a nearby small hotel.
Day
7.
We start this day on a light touch, by visiting the Hvoll
folk museum at Dalvík, whose main attraction is it's special section dedicated
to the memory of Jóhann "the Giant" Pétursson, who stood 7 ft 9 in tall, the tallest
Icelander who ever lived. Passing next through a long tunnel to the fishing town
of Ólafsfjörður, we will cross over the mountain pass of Lágheiði, and soon the
majestic fjord of Skagafjörður will spring into view. Two islands adorn this fjord,
first we'll spot the low lying Málmey and shortly afterwards the high cliffs of
Drangey appear, and we cannot help letting our minds wander back to almost a thousand
years ago, when Grettir hinn Sterki (the Strong) and his brother Illugi were finally
captured and assassinated in this almost impregnable fortress probably in the
year 1030. We will first visit the old trading post at Hofsós, and examine
some of the oldest houses still standing in Iceland, dating from the middle of
the 18th century, and should some Americans or Canadians of Icelandic origin be
a part of our group, we will visit the so called Western Icelandic Heritage Centre,
dedicated to the several thousands Icelanders who just after the middle of the
19th century, left the old country to settle in the New World. But we'll
try to make this a short visit, since we are in a hurry to reach the most important
historic place in Northern Iceland, the bishopric Hólar, where some newly
started archaeological investigations are also taking place, research which is
also bound to last for years and even decades, since there is a massive amount
of information and artifacts buried in the ground here, and spread over an unusually
large area, and spanning virtually the whole history of Iceland. The digs at Hólar
have been especially well organized in order to accommodate and receive visitors
since all of the artifacts unearthed, and not in need of some special treatment
for their preservation, are put immediately on display at the Hólar schoolhouse.
The reconstructed Auðunnarstofa, which also falls into the category of "a Hypothetical
House" although we have some old drawings and descriptions of what the original
looked like, was funded by the Norwegian Government and is well worth a visit.
After lunch, we'll make our way across the Héraðsvötn estuary and pass
through the town of Sauðárkrókur, and make a short halt at another historic place
in this valley, called Reynistaður where a nunnery was also founded (1295-1552)
but no search for it has yet been undertaken and only very limited archaeological
research has been carried out here; however, a restored priory and church make
it well worth a visit. Continuing our journey up the valley, we'll arrive shortly
afterwards at Glaumbær, where a team
of American archaeologists from the UCLA university in California made some important
discoveries recently, and may possibly even have found the farm of Snorri Þorfinnsson,
son of explorer Þorfinnur Karlsefni and his wife, Guðríður Þorbjarnardóttir and
was the first European which we know by name to have been born in the New World,
and who spent his final years here at Glaumbær according to the Saga of the Greenlanders.
During the summer of 2003 some probing ditches were dug, revealing the existence
of some important buildings in the ground, but the excavations will only start
in earnest when the necessary funds become available. Through the use of scanning
equipment, the scientists also found evidence of the existence of similar big
buildings in the ground at the nearby farm of Stóraseila, but it will undoubtedly
be a while until they can be excavated.
Dinner and overnight in a good
hotel in the valley of Skagafjörður.
Day 8.
We start the day by visiting the quaint little chapel at Víðimýri, and therafter
passing over the mountain pass of Vatnsskarð and arriving in the district of Austur
Húnavatnssýslu we'll prefer the small county lanes of the picturesque Svínavatnshrepp
to the main highway passing through the valley of Langidalur. Our first halt today
will be at the curious mounds and hills of Vatnsdalshólar
and at Þrístapi, where the last public execution in Iceland took place in 1830;
thereafter, we'll be heading for Þingeyrar where our first task will be to admire
the very beautiful church made out of hewn Icelandic rock, and afterwards, we
will try to imagine where the important monastery may have stood, which was founded
here in 1133 and lasted until the reformation. But this is an arduous task, since
this property is huge and when the time comes, it will undoubtedly need an important
geophysical survey to pinpoint the location of the monastery. There is no harm,
however, in letting one's mind wander back in time and try to imagine what this
place may have looked like roughly eight centuries ago when Abbot Karl Jónsson,
Monk Oddur Snorrason, and many other men of spirit walked these fields, and contemplated
life's secrets in the monastery's cells before heading to the scriptorium in order
to put ink to vellum and record such tales for posterity as the Sverris Saga,
The Saga of Ólafur Tryggvason and doubtlessly some of the Icelandic Sagas which
cannot be determined any more.
Our next destination, in close proximity
to Þingeyrar, is Borgarvirki, the only ancient fortress still in existence today
in Iceland, and as we wander about the thick fortress walls,we will speculate
as visitors can only do here, whether the place was built by 15th century squire
Loftur "the Rich" Guttormsson, the Saga-Age hero Finnbogi rammi (the Rough), or
perhaps that the place may be even older still and constructed prior to the admitted
date of settlement , like the man made caves in southern Iceland?
Next
we proceed in a southerly direction through the fjord of Hrútafjörður, across
the moor of Laxárdalsheiði and do not let up until we reach the valley of Haukadal
in the district of Dalasýslu, where we intend to visit yet another "Hypothetical
House", this time at the farm of Eiríksstaðir, so name
after the most famous viking of them all, Eiríkur Rauði, Erik the Red, who lived
there prior to his epic journey over the rough seas to Greenland, after having
been condemned and chased away from Iceland. Here of course, we will recall the
Saga of Erik the Red, the Saga of the Greenlanders, the discovery and settlement
of Greenland and the subsequent discovery of America exactly 1000 years ago.
Crossing
over the Brattabrekka Pass and into the valley of Norðurárdalur, where we will
admire the beautiful shape of the pair of volcanic craters Grábrókargígar and the
lava fields around them, we will finally head inland in order to admire beauty
of the waterfalls of Hraunfossar and Barnafossar before finishing the day at
Reykholt for dinner and overnight stay.
Day 9.
At Reykholt, the
fief of the Saga Age chieftain and historian Snorri Sturluson, people
have for years been able to admire the beautiful shape and ingenuous construction
of Snorri's bathing pool and been able to take a peak into the getaway
tunnel leading to the higher ground and hill and above it. Thus, it has been obvious
that under somewhere under that hill or near the old cemetery, the remains of
Snorri's residence or wooden fortress could very likely be found. But for decades,
lack of funds prevented any serious archeological investigations from being initiated
at this very promising site, i.e. until only 4 or 5 years ago, that they were
finally raised, and the research started under the leadership of chief archeologist
Dr. Guðrún Sveinbjarnardóttir, who very naturally started her work digging in
a northwesterly direction from the place were the tunnel left off. However, instead
of the fairly rapid success which was hoped for, the work has progressed at an
almost painfully slow rate since the ground has proved much more difficult to
excavate than previously thought, with layers upon layers of latter day constructions
being have to be sifted through before finally reaching the highly coveted Saga-Age
layer. Here, therefore, as in so many other places which we have already visited
on this journey, the task in hand will take years and even decades to complete.
At Reykholt, there are also some ambitious plans afoot to establish a library
of historical works, in the honour of Snorri Sturluson, and a small exhibition
dedicated to Snorri and the writing of the Icelandic Sagas has already been open
in the basement of the new church.
Our next destination will be the tremendously
powerful Deildartunguhver hotspring, in the vicinity of Reykholt, but thereafter,
having visited so many monastery- and convent sites on our trip, we intend to
visit the place where the first of them all was founded, at Bær, in the Bæjarsveit
county. Here, as generally admitted by scholars, it is highly likely that the
first abbey in Iceland was founded, by an Englishman named Hróðólfur by the Icelanders
who was a bishop and we also know that he was closely related to the English king
and saint, Edward the Confessor who reigned from 1042 -1066, since we know that
after he left Iceland, he was promoted by this relative of his to abbot of the
Abbey of Abington in Northamptonshire in the year 1050. It is also generally admitted
by scholars that it was Hróðólfur, who brought the Icelanders the "English" alphabet
(33 letters) which we still use today, substituting it to the runic alphabet which
had been in use up until that time.
From Bær, we continue our journey alongside
the river Hvítá, until we reach the town of, Borgarnes, where we will first observe the burial mound
of the Viking settler Skallagríms Kveldúlfsson and the beautiful botanical garden
which the people of Borgarnes have laid out around the burial mound. We then head
up to Skallagríms's settlement farm, Borg á Mýrum and remember the tumultuous
saga of Skallagrím's son Egill, the Egils Saga, which is commonly considered to
be the second best of the Icelandic Sagas. At Borg, we will also examine another
runic tombstone in the cemetery, which for a very long time was thought to be
the tomb of Kjartan Ólafsson, the hero of another saga, the Laxdæla Saga, but
later studies of it have revealed that it almost certainly isn't, and now it's
generally admitted that the inscription reads: "Hier hvíler Halr Hranason", i.e.
Here lies Halr Hranason.
From Borgarnes, we will continue our journey southwards,
to the town of Akranes, where we intend to visit the important Folk and Shipping
Museum at Garðar which
has a very important collection of objects and artifacts from the western part
of Iceland, which make this collection well worth a visit. Unfortunately, there
is no guidance or escort available at this museum (such as the one which has made
the museum at Skógar so popular) so here, we will have to find our own way through
the displays. One of the highlights of this museum are the roughly 12.000 year
old whalebones, which were discovered high in the hills of mount Akrafjall during
the construction of a roadway nearby.
After a short sightseeing trip around
the town of Akranes, we will pass under the sea through the impressive Hvalfjarðargöng
underwater tunnel and
arrive shortly in Reykjavík, where the participants will have some free time for
themselves in the late afternoon.
Duration of tour: 9 days,
9 nights. Minimum number of passengers: 2 persons. N.B: This tour operates
in the summertime only, and the itinerary is liable to change if, at the last
minute, we learn of some interesting discoveries being made. Price: Trade enquiries welcome.(click inside box to select your currency).
Deposit
required at the reservation30% ; single room supplement +18%
Services included: (4x4)
transportation and guidance. Small comfortable hotels, farm accommodation or similar,
in double rooms with "en suite" facilities. All meals,(big breakfast, small lunch,
three course dinner), starting with lunch on first day and ending with lunch on
the last day.Drinks/minibars not included. Necessary gear: Good outdoor clothing
and sturdy footwear. Also bring a swimsuit. Operated: In summer only. Note:
The tour may come momentarily to a halt for reasons of bad weather, snow, flooded
roads or other such unforseeable "force majeure" causes. Valferðir ehf will not
accept any responsibility for inconvenience or extra-cost incurred because of
such events.
