The White Falcon - 25.06.1971, Blaðsíða 9

Iceland in Art
9 Arbaer relives the past
To those of us vho are transient, it is hard to
conceive of Icelandic life as being centered around
anything but coastal fishing villages and towns.
Yet, this picture only cane into being around the
turn of the century. Previously, the far* settle—
■ants scattered throughout the sparsely populated
country were the rule. Today these sod exaaples of
the past have been for the most part reclaimed by
the land fron which they were made and few exaaples
of the earth and stone houses and churches remain.
Arbaer is one of these. Located on the outskirts
of Reykjavik, this old turf fan has been turned
into e Municipal museum to which other old hones
and churches have been moved to restore the heri-
tage they provide in a central location.
This fan, which was inhabited until 1948 is an
excellent example of the living conditions of the
Inland of the past. At the same time, the adj*.
t structure is evident of the change that took
both In the society and architecture as wood
other durable building materials became more
able during the 19th century.
'Notably few of the old turf farms have survived
useuns, for even in their golden era, they
eeldoai endured a very long tine and frost and rain
would take their toll*
cant i
ML
Living in such a structure was primitive at best
yet apparently not as vmoonfortable or cold as one
might suspect. A single large communal room domi-
nated and served for virtually everything. A small
kitchen with open hearth provided the only warmth
for the entire structure. Even the few Aeep and
cows were housed within the farm building.
As successive generations grew or prosperity In-
creased, new additions would be added, each adje-
o*nt to the former with an Interconnecting corri-
dor* Complex multi-family units use too allow an
entire village to exist without having to go out-
side*
The best way to find out more Is to go porscm-
ally end get the details from a pretty Icelander
la her native ooetuma. The museum is open dally,
except Monday, from 1 to < p*m*
WHITE FALCON
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