Árbók Hins íslenzka fornleifafélags - 01.01.1943, Page 43

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from some volcanic eruption already before the roofs caved in.
For the distribution and dating of tliis layer see S. Thorarinsson’s
report helow. — All the houses were found to he excellently
preserved, if not cjuile so well as Stöng farm in Þjórsárdalur (cf. Forn-
tida gárdar i Island, p. 72—97, 315). The dwelling consists of a hall (skáli),
a living-room (stofa), a dainj (búr), a cowshed (fjós), a harn (hlaða) and
a small hut (kofi), hut the sheep sheds are scattered over tlie homefield
(Fig. 5). The plan of tlie farm-houses sliows tlie lype of farm, which
3)as fittingly heen called tlie Þjórsárdalur-type, since excavations in that
district have uncovered a series of farms ol' tliis type, of which Stöng is
the finest specimen. In farms of this kind the main liouses are huilt end
to end, whith some smaller hack-liouses lying at riglit angles to tlie former.
This is a more advanced stage of tlie early hall of tlie Viking period, ue-
presented hy such farms as Skallakot in Þjórsárdalur (Forntida gárdar, p.
55—71), hut as yet tliere is no sign of the j)assage-house, so well knowh
in later times. Þórarinsstaðir — and Laugar — differ from the Þjórsárdalur
farnis only in one respect: The cowshed and the barn are built in one with
the dwellings, which could l)e done easily without interfering with the
construction of tlie farm-houses and tlieir relation to eacli otlier.
A few details are wortli mentioning. At the entrance there is a huge,
naturally made stone bowl, placed in a niche in the doorway, undouhtedly a
wash basin (Fig. 9). Other details, such as sleeping-bunks and a fire-
place in tlie h'all, sitting-benches and a hearth (hlóðir) in the living-room
and impressions of large vessets in the dairy, where they have been sunk
down into the floor, will he seen on the plan and the jdiotograplis (Figs. 7
and 10—15). In the cowslied there are stalls witli stall-stones of the ordin-
ary mediaeval sliape (Figs. 17-—18).
On the homefield there are 3 groups of shccp slxeds for at least 160 sheep.
These houses are all of the same type, long and narrow, passage-like
houses witli a low mangcr along one wall, made of flag-stones set on edge
(Figs. 20—21). It is rather striking to find so many slieej) sheds in Þór-
arinsstaðir, as notliing similar was noticed in Þjórsárdalur and the medi-
aeval farmer in tliis part of tlie country would not a priori he expected
!o have buill houses for all liis sliecp. At the head of the manger in one of
the slieep sheds a lieap of iron orc was stored, sheltered by big flag-stones
'Fig. 22), and near this house the remains of a forge were found.
Very few ancient ohjects were found, the most important being a small
slone lamp (Fig. 23). It is evident that there must have been time to remove
the liousehold articles hefore the roofs fell, hut the scarcity of finds also
shows that human settlement has heen of no long duration on the spot.In fact
everything seems to indicate tliat these houses are the only ones ever
huilt on the farm-site.
As for the dating of the farm we must seek assistance lroni the tephro-
chronology, according to which Þórarinsstaðir farm •— as well as Laugar
and prohahly the otlier farms in Hrunamannaafréttur — must have heen
devastaled hy the disastrous effects of a volcanic eruption of Hekla in
ihe year of 1300. From an archaeological point of view there is nothing 1o
contradict this theory; on tlie contrary certain details support it.