Reykholt. The Church Excavations

Reykholt in Borgarfjörður is one of the most significant historical and heritage sites in Iceland. In the years 2002-2007, archaeological research was carried out on the old church site in Reykholt. The results of that research are now published in Reykholt's book, The Church Excavations by Guðrún Sveinbjarnardóttir. The book is published by the National Museum of Iceland in cooperation with the Snorrastofu Centre for Culture and the Middle Ages in Reykholt and the University Publishing House.

Although Reykholt has probably been a mansion since it was first built, the place is best known for the residence of Snorr Sturluson, author of Snorr Edda and Heimskringla among other works, where in the first half of the 13th century, Reykholt became one of the first places, in the church history the word's meaning, early in the 12th century and was then also a myth. The oldest antiquities in the town have been dated to around 1000 and therefore belong to the second generation based in Iceland. A church appears to have been erected on the site at a similar time or slightly later.

In the late 19th century, the church was moved a little north to the cemetery, where it still stands, but it provided access to the old church site that was excavated in 2002-2007. The results are published in this book. The research focused exclusively on the buildings where the cemetery around them was in use until the early 20th century. Four different building types were excavated, one on top of the other, but they were divided into eight building levels. The earliest three buildings were demolished by more than a meter, but no such churches are known anywhere else in the North Atlantic region. The medieval buildings are thought to have been stone-works houses, with models for example in Norway. The type of construction changed during the change of morals in the 16th century, and from the 17th century more detailed descriptions of the buildings are preserved in the surveys. During the excavation, a number of artifacts were found, including imported artifacts that can be age determined. Only the graves that were inside the foundations of the house were investigated. It is noteworthy that in the 18th century church a group of individuals belonging to the same family was buried.

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