Photo: Fjordur – Seydisfjordur fornleifar – Facebook
Posted on 08/12/2022 8:47:54 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
Archaeologists in Seydisfjordur have excavated jewelry that dates from 940 – 1100, just after the initial settlement of Iceland. Notably, one of the beads found in the excavation even bears the colours of the Icelandic national flag.
Archaeological digs have been underway in Seydisfjordur, a fishing village in the East Fjords of Iceland, since 2020. Due to the high slopes of the valley, Seydisfjordur is subject to land slides, and local authorities plan to build defensive barriers to protect the village, which has suffered damage in recent years. However, these same land slides have also preserved archaeological sites in the region particularly well. Archaeologists have been called in to perform exploratory digs where the defensive barriers will be erected, and have found remarkably intact manmade structures and artifacts such as game pieces and pearls.
The most recent discoveries are centered around the farmstead where Bjolfur, a settler named in Landnamabok, is believed to have had his farmstead. Significant finds at this site have included the remains of a man, a horse, a spear, and a boat. Archaeologists have been able to date the site with a fair amount of accuracy, given tephra layers from eruptions, and land slide layers...
Some twenty archaeologists are currently at work excavating in Seydisfjordur. The field season is expected to last through the middle of August, and continue next year.
(Excerpt) Read more at icelandreview.com ...
Thanks, SunkenCiv. My wife and I visited that village in 1974. Steepest road I ever drove on. Unpaved back then. Beautiful spot, though.
:^)
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