Iceland review - 2013, Qupperneq 54

52 ICELAND REVIEW
in her kitchen producing her now signature Græðir healing oint-
ment from an old family recipe. In 2009, she opened a workshop
and started producing a range of other hair and body products
made from Icelandic herbs. “I was looking for something else to
do than work in the theater and had always been interested in
herbs,” she explains. Her products have proved a success and are
now stocked in stores in Europe and Singapore and last year, she
opened Sóley Natura Spa in Icelandair Hotel Natura in Reykjavík.
Sóley sources the herbs she uses in her products from various
places around Iceland. “We have permission from the landowners
and only return to the spots we pick every few years to allow the
areas time to rejuvenate,” she says.
Her products are based on a blend of three key ingredients: birch
(for its anti-inflammatory, bactericidal and virucidal properties,
used to treat eczema), willow (a painkiller) and yarrow (used for
burns, bleeding and wounds). “I always use fresh herbs and then
put them in oil or alcohol before heating them,” Sóley says.
The herbs are then sent to her workshop in Grenivík near
Akureyri, North Iceland. “The location, near the mountain
Kaldbakur, is said to be one of the earth’s energy spots and the
water is the purest there is, coming direct from the source,” Sóley
maintains.
BAck to BASicS
Sóley and others like Aðalbjörg Þorsteinsdóttir at Villimey, a
company in the West Fjords specializing in biological salves and
ointments, focus on the external use of Icelandic herbs. However,
The medicinal and culinary use of herbs in Iceland
goes back centuries, with references in written
sources including the sagas and folktales. In 1783,
Björn Halldórsson published Grasnytjar, describing the use of herbs
for food, medicine, dye and insect repellent.
Knowledge about herbal medicine traveled to Iceland from the
Nordic countries and Britain when the country was first settled in
the 9th century. Icelandic physicians are known to have made exten-
sive use of Icelandic herbs over the centuries and the importance
placed on plants and herbs is reflected in the number of Icelandic
place names which bear their names. The highest peak of Iceland,
Hvannadalshnjúkur, for example, is named after angelica (hvönn in
Icelandic).
Herbalist Anna Rósa Róbertsdóttir, points to several herbs which
have played an important part in Iceland’s history. “Angelica, for
example, was frequently grown in gardens in Iceland and was used
both in cooking and for medicinal purposes while dulse and Iceland
moss were used as currency.” The latter has also been used in breads,
pudding, cough syrups, soups, porridges, drinks and dye throughout
Icelandic history.
FAmily cuStom
“It’s a tradition that goes back generations,” actress and owner of
Sóley Organics, Sóley Elíasdóttir, says of her family’s tradition of
harnessing the healing properties of herbs. “My great-great-grand-
mother Þórunn was a midwife and herbalist,” she explains.
In 2007, Sóley left the stage to return to her roots. She started out
The tradition of using herbs and plants for medicinal purposes in
Iceland dates back to the settlement. Recent years have seen a
renewed interest in the practice with Icelandic herbs, plants and
flowers being used in food, medicine, beauty products and for
decoration. Iceland Review went to find out more.
By Zoë roBerT
fLORAL DESIGnS By KrISTJáN INgI JóNSSoN
PHOTOS By áSLAug SNorrAdóTTIr