Archaeologia Islandica - 01.01.2010, Page 9

GAVIN LUCAS
EDITORIAL
This eighth volume of the joumal is an
opportunity to mark a double celebration
for2010: the óOthbirthday’s oftwo people
who have played a central role in the
development of Icelandic archaeology
over the last three decades. The first is
Mjöll Snæsdóttir, a veteran of the
archaeological scene who has worked on
many of the most important excavations in
the country, among others Herjólfsdalur,
Aðalstræti (both in the 1970s and the
2000s), Stóraborg and Skálholt. Her career
straddles the transition from the early
professionalization of the discipline under
Kristján Eldjám to the subsequent growth
and diversification that came with the
emergence of independent organizations
in the 1990s. Her field experience of
Icelandic archaeology is perhaps unrivalled
and in particular, her excavations at
Stóraborg mark an important moment in
Icelandic archaeology being the first
extensive investigation of a farm mound.
Besides this, she served as the editor of the
Icelandic archaeological society’s joumal
Arbók hins íslenska fornleifafélags
between 1993 and 2008 and today remains
a member of the editorial board. The other
fígure is Thomas McGovem whose
introduction to Icelandic archaeology
actually came through collaboration with
Mjöll during her work at Stóraborg in the
early 1980s; throughout that decade and
the early 1990s, Tom conducted a series of
excavations of middens in various parts of
the country and effectively established the
basis of Icelandic zooarchaeology. A
pivotial moment came in 1996 through his
collaboration with the Institute of
Archaeology and their flagship project at
Hofstaðir in Mývatnssveit, a partnership
which has only strengthened over the years.
From this, has sprung palaeoenvironmental
research and long-term historical
ecological studies of intemational repute,
not least because of Tom’s gift of bringing
together scholars tfom multiple disciplines
and countries to work together.
The fírst part of this volume is thus
dedicated to these two individuals and the
invaluable and irreplaceable role they
have had, and continue to have, in
Icelandic archaeology. A light-hearted
interview conducted by Bima Lámsdóttir
with Mjöll engaging her reflections on
Icelandic archaeology is followed by a
detailed study of farm mounds in Iceland
by Orri Vésteinsson. Then comes an
honorary paper on Tom written by three of
his (former/current) students - Sophia
Perdikaris, George Hambrecht and
Ramona Harrison - summarizing his
career and academic achievements,
highlighting the central role that teamwork
plays in Tom’s view of archaeology.
Ramona Harrison then offers us a concrete