Hvítárholt
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Hvítárholt (Icelandic pronunciation:
Settlement
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The location of Hvítárholt is somewhat unusual because the settlement is at a high elevation and has been on the weather side, and also there is no good supply of water nearby. The Hvítá River freezes in winter and also floods above its banks in the spring thaw. It seems not unlikely that these circumstances played a part in the ancient settlement being abandoned or relocated.
Archaeological finds
In summer 1963, remains of ancient human habitation were found at Hvítárholt. On closer examination, the researchers realised that it was a question of a settlement from the Saga Age, and it was decided to undertake a complete investigation of the area around the present-day settlement. An extensive archaeological investigation was carried out, which lasted with interruptions from summer 1963 to 1967.[1] The investigation was led by Þór Magnússon; Guðmundur Jónsson, Gísli Gestsson, Kristján Eldjárn and Halldór J. Jónsson also worked on it. It is one of the oldest Icelandic settlements to have been excavated, dating to the 9th century.[2]
The area across which the finds were distributed was quite extensive: a ridge from 600 to 800 metres (660 to 870 yd) wide.
The investigation at Hvítárholt was the most extensive settlement dig that the National Museum of Iceland had conducted up to that time. By the time it ended, it had produced some of the most important and unusual artifacts of the Saga Age and of human occupation that have been excavated in Iceland and increased our knowledge of how people lived. In all, ten buildings of various types were found, all of which appeared to date to the same period, approximately the 10th century. There were three large longhouses and remains of a barn and a cowshed. In addition to this, remains of five pit houses were found,[3] a totally unknown type of house in Iceland.
One other thing that made the excavation at Hvítárholt remarkable[
Longhouses
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The three timber
. In one respect, however, the longhouses were unusual: they had walls which are primarily known in neighbouring countries and had not previously been encountered in Iceland.Pit houses
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The most remarkable[
Roman coin
In addition, one of the largest buildings yielded a Roman copper antoninianus, dated to 275–276 CE.[2][5][6] The question posed by this find was what were the people at Hvítáholt at that time doing with a Roman coin? Kristján Eldjarn suggested that Roman seamen may have gone off course for Britain and landed in eastern Iceland long before its settlement by the Norse, and Vikings later found the coin there and took it home; this seems the most plausible theory.[7]
References
- ^ Þór Magnússon (1972). "Sögualdarbyggð í Hvítárholti". Árbók Hins íslenzka fornleifafélags (in Icelandic). 69: 5–80. (pdf; select Megintexti in second pull-down menu)
- ^ a b Ingmar Jansson, "Hvítárholt", Nationalencyklopedin (in Swedish) (full text requires subscription)
- ^ Orri Vésteinsson, "Patterns of Settlement in Iceland: A Study in Prehistory"[permanent dead link], Saga-Book 25 (1998) 1–29, p. 14; plan Fig. 4, p. 15.
- ^ Orri Vésteinsson, pp. 16, 26.
- ^ "Nærri 1700 ára rómverskur koparpeningur finnst við Hvítárholt". Morgunblaðið (in Icelandic). 1966.
- ^ Davíð Bjarni Heiðarsson, "Roman coins in Iceland: Roman remnants or Viking exotica", student report, University of Iceland, 2010, p. 10.
- ^ Davíð Bjarni Heiðarsson, pp. 19–20, 24.