Árbók Hins íslenzka fornleifafélags - 01.01.2010, Síða 81
80 ÁRBÓK FORNLEIFAFÉLAGSINS
Summary
Round roof less ruins, often referred to as „sheep shelters“ are well known in the
archaeological record in Iceland. They have sometimes raised curiousity among the
public and antiquarians because of their peculiar round shape and are commonly
referred to as ancient or early in place-name records; although, it is clear that they were
still being built in the early 20th century. Interestingly, round sheep shelters are not
common in the written sources until the 18th century; and it seems that they existed
in some parts of the country, mainly the south, but were completely lacking in other
parts, especially the north. Some references indicate that many of them had fallen out
of use before the 18th century but people still recognized the ruins.
In the 18th century round sheep houses were highly recommended by agricultural
pioneers, mainly because free roaming sheep who had access to open shelters produced
better wool than those locked up in dark and wet houses. Thus, the sheep shelters
gained popularity again in some places and farmers continued to build them until the
early 20th century. However, at that point they became seen by some as a sign of
animal cruelty due to the fact that sheep, who had access to them, were normally not
fed hay.
Over the last years extensive archaeological survey has revealed several ruins of
sheep folds so it is now possible to examine them in context. Three alleged sheep
folds in the south of Iceland have hitherto been dated using tephrochronology, two of
which were trenched by the author and one which was recently completely excavated
by Bjarni F. Einarsson. All three were sealed by tephra layers dating to the early
18th century, most likely 1721. A couple of more round ruins, alleged sheep shelters,
have been trenched by the author but could not be proven to be sheep shelters.
Additionally, a round ruin close to Húshólmi, Reykjanes, has been dated to pre-1226,
although additional data about the interpretation is lacking.