Árbók Hins íslenzka fornleifafélags - 01.01.1998, Page 119

BÆRINN UNDIR SANDINUM
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Summary
In 1991 a new Norse farm site, belonging to the old Norse Western Settlement in
Greenland was discovered. It is locatad at the end of the c. 80 km long Ameralik fjord
east of Nuuk, the capital of Greenland.The site had been covered with 1.5 m thick layer
of sand and was only found because the neighbouring glacial river had changed its
course and started eroding into the old farm-mound.
The site was excavated between 1991 and 1996 and became known as the GUS Site
(Gárden Under Sandet) or the Farm Beneath the Sand.
The preservation conditions at the site were exceptional due to the permafrost. The
excavations revealed a Norse farnr which had been in use front the beginning of the
llth century to the middle of the 14th century, leaving up to 1.5 metre thick cultural
layers with over 40 roonis and at least eight recognisable building phases. The earliest
phase of the site revealed the remains ofaVikingAge hall were discovered, the first ofits
kind to be excavated in Norse Greenland.
In this article the results of the excavation of the hall are discussed.The hall is the old-
est building on the site. Its occupation can be divided into 2 phases.The first phase was
the huntan occupation of the hall. Although the northern and southern ends of the hall
had been damaged or destroyed by later buildings, it seenis as if the hall has been 12
metres long and 5 metres wide at the center, narrowing slightly to the ends.The walls of
the hall were built solely from turfblocks (klömbruhnaus) and were 1.5-1.9 metres wide.
The entrance was on the eastern side near the northern gable, 1 metre wide and led into
the entrance hall. To the south of the entrance hall were the dwelling rooms and to the
north the utility section.