Archaeologia Islandica - 01.01.2015, Page 45

Abandoned Settlements at the Foot of Mt Hekla
that farm abandonment is a far more com-
plex matter than previously thought and we
still lack understanding of the various and
complex processes behind it, both envi-
ronmental and social. It is now commonly
accepted among archaeologists and envi-
ronmental scientists (e.g. McGovern et al.
2007; Simpson et al. 2001) that in order to
fully understand the settlement history of
any given area it is necessary to view hu-
man-environment interactions as complex
and ever-changing processes.
Ihe deserted settlements in
Rangárvellir
The first overview of the deserted farms in
Rangárvellir was provided by antiquarian
Brynjúlfur Jónsson, who recorded 53 de-
serted farms in the area in 1898 (Jónsson
1898). Half a century later local antiquar-
ian Vigfús Guðmundsson surveyed desert-
ed farms in Rangárvellir (Guðmundsson
1952, 1954). Guðmundsson divided the
abandoned farms into two categories;
farmsteads that had been eroded and farm-
steads that had not. His conclusion was that
79 farmsteads had been eroded but 23 had
not. Ihe difference in numbers of farms by
Jónsson and Guðmundsson is explained
mostly by the fact that Jónsson counted
only farms but not those cases where a
farmstead had been relocated within the
property boundary. Guðmundsson on the
other hand counted all known farmsteads
irrespective of their relationship with farm
units. The late 19* and mid-20* century
studies of Jónsson and Guðmundsson are
the only attempts that have been made
to map the extent of abandonment in
Rangárvellir and characterise the develop-
ment of its settlement patterns before the
present study.
The 2006-2009 field survey was based
on written sources complemented by in-
terviews with locals; analysis of aerial
photographs and targeted field-walking.
All archaeological sites 100 years or older
were located, recorded and described - al-
together over 1800 sites. Such a field sur-
vey is an essential prerequisite for any kind
of comprehensive research of settlement
change. During the survey the condition
of each site was evaluated and assessments
were made of pending threats, aiding in the
identification of sites that could be suitable
for further investigation.
In the pilot study the data collected dur-
ing the field survey was analysed with the
aim of identifying all archaeological sites
that represented abandoned farmsteads.
Special attention was given to place names
and historical documents which can pro-
vide dating indications about the occupa-
tion at each site and its abandonment. Out
of the 1815 archaeological sites recorded in
Rangárvellir 172 were farmsteads. Only 23
of these farmsteads remain occupied. This
means that 87% of all known farmsteads in
the area have been abandoned. The survey
data was mapped in ArcMap GIS in order
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