Archaeologia Islandica - 01.01.2005, Page 24

Ragnar Edvardsson & Thomas H. McGovern
Figure l.The longhouse at the end of excavation
center of the graveyard. The modem
church stands a few meters south of the
graveyard and was constmcted in 1913.
Certain areas were selected for
excavation based on the results of the
archaeological survey. The areas selected
for testing were the old farm mound and
an area within the homefield where the
survey had located an oval shaped build-
ing. Four test trenches, each measuring 5
x 2 meters were excavated. One was
placed in the farm mound, another in the
oval-shaped stmcture and two in close
proximity of this stmcture.
The results of the 2003 excava-
tion indicate extensive cultural remains
in the area around the oval stmcture,
which probably date to the lOth century.
The conclusion of the 2003 excavations
suggested that the oval stmcture was
more than likely the remains of a Viking
Age longhouse as the excavation had
revealed a central hearth and some post-
holes typical of such stmctures. The test
trench on the farm mound showed that
the mound had been damaged by modem
activity but the damage did not seem to
be extensive. In combination, these
results present the research with an
unusual opportunity to examine the
development of the settlement at
Vatnsíjörður from its earliest beginnings
in the Viking Age to its present-day func-
tion in the 21 st century.
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