Archaeologia Islandica - 01.01.2010, Page 84

VÉRONIQUE FORBES, ALLISON BAIN, GUÐRÚN ALDA GÍSLADÓTTIR AND KAREN B. MILEK
the United Kingdom. The analysis of
very large assemblages of insect remains
spanning the Roman Period to the Viking
Age allowed the appreciation of chrono-
logical changes and spatial variations
regarding the settlement’s cleanliness
and ecology, the quality of water and
food supply, the environmental condi-
tions within buildings, as well as the
means of management and disposal of
rubbish and human wastes (e.g.
Addyman 1989; Hall & Kenward 1990;
Kenward & Hall 1995). Numerous other
examples of similar studies have been
done on sites located not only in the
United Kingdom (e.g. Buckland et al.
1993; Carroteta/. 1997; Hall etal. 1983;
2000) but also in Ireland (e.g. Allison et
al. 1999; Kenward et al. 2000),
Greenland (e.g. Buckland et al. 1996;
Panagiotakopulu et al. 2007); North
America (e.g. Bain 1998; 2001; Bain &
Prévost 2010), Europe (Nielsen et al.
2000; Ponel 1997) and the Near East (e.g.
Kislev & Simchoni 2007).
In Iceland, archaeoentomology has
only been used occasionally to examine
sanitary conditions in houses. At
Stóraborg, an important farm site located
on the southem coast of the country, the
identifícation of insects associated with
vegetal and decaying organic matter
recovered from inside medieval buildings
demonstrated a warm and squalid environ-
ment (Perry et al. 1985, 342). Sheep
ectoparasites identified ífom the same site,
including the sheep ked (Melophagus ovi-
nus) and the sheep lice (Damalinia ovis),
also allowed a detailed discussion of wool
processing practices involving the use of
urine as a cleansing agent (Buckland &
Perry 1989). Archaeoentomological
analyses of post-medieval deposits from
the westem Icelandic church site of
Reykholt indicated species associated
with turf and hay, which appeared to have
been used in every room of the building
both as building materials and insulation
(Buckland et al. 1992). This study also
located activity areas for wool processing
and delousing. According to the authors,
the quantity of human ectoparasites iden-
tified at Reykholt suggests rather unhy-
gienic conditions, at least compared to
our 21st century standards (Buckland et
al. 1992, 162-164). More recently, the
archaeoentomological study of 17^-18™
century deposits from Skálholt by
Konráðsdóttir (2007) identified the func-
tions of two rooms from the bishop’s
house and school, providing a better
understanding of the site’s economy.
When integrated into the study of
Icelandic archaeological sites, archaeoen-
tomological analyses allow the documen-
tation of past day-to-day practices and
living conditions, some of which would
not necessarily by recognizable by other
means in the archaeological record. This
paper presents the results of archaeoento-
mological analyses which focused on late
19th anc[ eariy 20^ century turf and stone
dwellings at the site of Vatnsfjörður in
northwest Iceland. It provides new
insights into past daily practices and living
conditions in a mral household, and it is
the first specialised study on insect
remains ffom the Westfjords.
The Westfjords
The site of Vatnsfjörður is located on a
fjord of the same name, close to the cen-
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