Árbók Hins íslenzka fornleifafélags - 2019, Qupperneq 54

53JARÐFUNDNIR KAMBAR Á ÍSLANDI FRÁ LANDNÁMI TIL 1800
Þórgunnur Snædal. 2014. Munnleg heimild. Um bandrún eða kvistrún á kambi
frá Stóruborg undir Eyjafjöllum.
Øye, I. 2005. „Kammer, kjønn og kontekst“. Fra funn til samfunn. Jernalderstudier
tilegnet Bergljot Solberg på 70‒årdagen. Knut Andreas Bergsvik og Asbjørn
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Summary
Archaeological combs found in Iceland from the Settlment period to 1800
This article presents the analysis of archaeological combs and associated material
discovered in Iceland, dated from the settlement period until around 1800, with
the aim of aiding in the typological dating of archaeological sites in Iceland. Combs
are uniquely suited to this purpose, as they are a category of finds that are found
in all archaeological periods in Iceland, and are culturally and chronologically
diagnostic. The Icelandic corpus includes ca. 230 combs that are primarily of
imported materials, antler and boxwood (buxus sempervirens), though repair and
small alteration have occasionally been made locally with local materials. No
archaeological evidence of comb making has been found in Iceland, so all these
artefacts are thought to have been imported complete as personal belongings or
as merchants’ goods. The comb typology, as it appears in Iceland, seems to follow
Norse trends in the North-Atlantic closely during the Viking Age and Medieval
Period. It was therefore decided for this project to use existing data-labelling
created by scholars in Norway, Sweden and England. In the Post-Medieval period
there is a lack of useful comparative studies of combs, so it is uncertain how the
Icelandic scenario relates to the outside world from 1500 onwards.
The Icelandic combs were divided into three main periods (see page 12),
following Icelandic periodisation, with sub-divisions. These are period I, Viking
Age (9th‒11th century). The largest group of combs found in Iceland belong to this
period. They consist of single sided composite antler/bone combs with iron rivets,
ca. 80 combs or comb fragments. Period II, Medieval (11th‒15th century), with
three sub-categories. The largest group includes what is referred to as E-combs in
Norway (11th‒13th century), the earliest type within period II. E-combs are single-
sided composite antler/bone combs with copper alloy rivets. A total of 49 combs
or comb fragments have been recovered in Iceland. A small group of unique
cast copper combs, five items in total, probably ecclesiastical artefacts (12th-13th