Editiones Arnamagnæanæ. Series A - 01.10.2003, Side 146
124*
447 (AM 447 4to)
þessa Eyrbyggia sðgu hefur ritad Þorsteinn Sal: Þordarson, enn Variæ
lectiones (correctiones) sem a spatiunum og uppe yfer linunum eru,
eru med hende Sr Þordar i HiÞ'ardal, fðdur hans.
hæc certa sunt.
2. Textual features
Þorsteinn’s copy is unquestionably derived from IB 180 8vo (Z); the texts
of the two copies are very close by the standard of seventeenth century ma-
nuscript copying; moreover there is one complete line of Z (‘æ - sett’ f.
10vl8, c/447 11.21 in the present edition) that is missing in 447. Þórður
Jónsson supplied this in the margin of 447, probably using M. Further, that
the exemplar was Z itself is strengthened by the presence in Z of a few mar-
ginal entries almost certainly in the hand of séra Þórður.5
The date of 447 must lie between 1654, when Z was written, or at any
rate finished, and 1670, when Þórður Jónsson (ÞJ) died. It is not known
when his son Þorsteinn was born, but it is recorded that he attended the
school at Hólar 1669-70,6 which means that when he copied Z he was pro-
bably still in his teens. Between the compilation of 447 (including ÞJ’s ad-
ditions) and ÞJ’s death must be fitted the writing of the manuscript AM 445
a 4to in the hand of Helgi Grímsson,7 incumbent of Húsafell 1654-91. Helgi,
who was bom ca 1622, is known to have been in the service of ÞJ, and as
the text of AM 445 a 4to consists of an amalgamation of 447 and its M-
derived variants, it would seem that Helgi worked under ÞJ’s instructions;
that AM 445 a 4to was written before ÞJ’s death is also clear from the fact
that there are marginal variants in the manuscript in the hand of ÞJ.8 From
these various considerations one would roughly estimate the date of the
writing of 447 as between 1665 and 1670, with 445 a little later.
In the present edition the text of AM 447 4to is printed in smaller-sized
type, whereas ÞJ’s additions from M are given as variant readings below
the text in normal-sized type.
ÞJ’s methods of transferring the readings of M to AM 447 4to are fairly
consistent but do vary with circumstances. He may indicate what matter in
447 is to be cancelled by any of four methods - striking out, underlining,
expunging (/ e placing a row of dots under the words to be deleted) or over-
5 C/Scott 2003, p. 170.
6 Hannes Þorsteinsson, Ævir lærðra manna (MS in the National Archives of Iceland), sub nomi-
ne, where Þorsteinn’s birth is estimated as having occurred ca 1650.
7 Sveinn Níelsson 1950, p. 128.
8 Perhaps from Jón Gissursson’s AM 126 fol. (Aj) or a related text.