Viking Congress 2001 – Faroe Islands

National Representatives

• Denmark: Else Roesdahl, Niels Lund.
• England: Richard Hall, Judith Jesch.
• Faroe Islands: Arne Thorsteinsson, Andras Mortensen.
• Iceland: Guðmundur Ólafsson, Svavar Sigmundsson.
• Ireland: Donnchadh Ó Corráin, John Sheehan.
• Scotland: Christopher Morris, Doreen Waugh.
• Sweden: Anne-Sofie Gräslund, Helmer Gustavson.

Delegates of the Congress

Denmark: Svend Erik Albrethsen, Jan Bill, Trine Buhl, Gillian Fellows-Jensen, Peder Gammeltoft, Steffen Stummann Hansen, Pernille Hermann, Jørgen Højgaard Jørgensen, Niels & Jette Lund, Ditlev Mahler, Michael Lerche Nielsen, Anne Pedersen, Else Roesdahl, Marie & Bjarne Stoklund.

England: Lesley Abrams, Michael & Kirsten Barnes, James Barrett, Mark Blackburn, Paul Buckland, Jayne Carroll, Peter Foote, James Graham-Campbell, Richard Hall, Judith Jesch, John S. McKinnell, Richard North, Julian Richards, Andrew Wawn.

Faroe Islands: Símun V. Arge, Joannes Dalsgaard, Kirstin Eliasen, Kári Jespersen, Jóan Pauli Joensen, Anna Katrin Matras, Helgi Michelsen, Andras Mortensen, Lena Nolsøe, Jóhan Hendrik Winther Poulsen, Jógvan Ravnsfjall, Arne Thorsteinsson, Eivind Weihe.

Finland: Torsten Edgren.

Iceland: Svavar Sigmundsson & Þorgerður Árnadóttir, Anton Holt, Guðmundur Ólafsson, Gísli Sigurðsson, Þórgunnur Snædal, Guðrún Sveinbjarnardóttir, Sigríður Þorvaldsdóttir & Sverrir Tómasson.

Ireland: Howard B. Clarke, Stephen Harrison, Donnchadh Ó Corráin, John Sheehan.

Norway: James Knirk & Kari Egeland, Signe Horn Fuglesang, Knut Helle, Sigrid Kaland, Claus Krag, Else Mundal, Ingvild Øye, Heid Gjøstein Resi, Birgit Sawyer & Peter Sawyer, Dagfinn Skre, Gro Steinsland & Ragnar Søderlind.

Scotland: Colleen Batey, Olwyn Owen & Nigel Beal, Barbara Crawford, Ian Fisher, Andrew Jennings, Arne Kruse, Susan Kruse, Mary MacLeod, Christopher Morris, Brian Smith, Val Turner, Doreen Waugh & William Waugh.

Sweden: Stefan Brink, Anne-Sofie Gräslund, Helmer Gustavson, Birgitta Hårdh, Ingmar Jansson, Kenneth Jonsson, Thomas Lindkvist, Lena Peterson, Neil Price & Linda Qviström, Henrik Williams.

Excursions

A half-day excursion went to Northern Streymoy with visits to the Viking farmhouse in Kvívík, the church in Hvalvík, the village of Saksun, and to Tjørnuvík, where the islands’ first Viking burial ground was discovered in 1956. Another half-day excursion was made to Kirkjubøur on Streymoy, the episcopal residence and cultural centre of the islands in medieval times.

The Post-congress excursions went to Sandoy, Skúvoy and to Eysturoy.

Sponsors

Føroya Sparikassi, Letterstedtska Föreningen, Mentamálaráðið, Atlantic Airways, Fóm Ísur, Føroya Banki, Føroya Bjór, Føroya Handilsskúli, Norðurlandahúsið, Restorffs Bryggjarí, Strandferðslan, Tekniski Skúli and the staff of Skúlaheimið.

Notes

Congress Diary:

As decided at the 13th Viking Congress in Nottingham, the 14th Viking Congress was held in the Faroes in 2001. Most of the members arrived in Tórshavn on the 19th of July, and the congress could begin the next morning.

On behalf of the Patron of the Congress, Anfinn Kallsberg, Prime Minister of the Faroes, the 14th Viking Congress was opened in Tórshavn on the 20th of July 2001 by Deputy Prime Minister Høgni Hoydal. It was a bright summers day with a blue sky and sunshine, and the 98 members, associates and companions were lucky to enjoy the same fine weather during the whole congress.

The main theme of the 14th Viking Congress was „Viking and Norse in the North Atlantic“, and nearly 70 papers had been announced from all disciplines of study of the Viking Age. The great interest unfortunately made it necessary to read papers in two simultaneous sessions, and 3 full and 3 half days were spent giving lectures followed by fruitful discussions. Most of the papers are printed in this volume, which certainly is going to throw new light on the Viking and later Norse age in the North Atlantic, especially in the Faroes.

The congress lectures were given in The Faroese Commercial School, but one evening a public lecture was arranged in the Nordic House in Tórshavn. Professor Knut Helle had been asked to give a public lecture on the position of the Faroes and the other scat lands in the medieval Norwegian dominion, a topic which has great public interest these days, and the lecture was attended by a large public audience.

All meals were taken at Skúlaheimið of the Technical School, where the members of the congress also had the opportunity to socialise in the evenings. Receptions were given by Óli Holm, Minister of Culture, and by Føroya Fornminnissavn, which offered a taste of a wide range of traditional Faroese specialities. The main social event, however, was the congress dinner at Skúlaheimið, where the members got the opportunity to taste one of the greatest Faroese dishes, puffins stuffed with cake dough and raisins, and nearly all did. Faroese chain dancing was of course part of the evening.

During the main congress, excursions were made to places and sites of cultural historical and archaeological interest. The first half-day excursion was to Northern Streymoy with visits to the Viking farmhouse in Kvívík, the church in Hvalvík, the village of Saksun, and to Tjørnuvík, where the islands’ first Viking burial ground was discovered in 1956. Another half-day excursion took us to Kirkjubøur on Streymoy, the episcopal residence and cultural centre of the islands in medieval times. The most famous monument on this site is the remains of the cathedral dedicated to St Magnus – an outstanding Gothic monument in the middle of the North Atlantic.

The main congress ended on the 25th of July and the next day some members left for home, while many stayed on to take part in the post-congress excursions. On July 26 we went to Sandoy and Skúvoy and on July 27 to Eysturoy. On Skúvoy the members paid a visit to Ólansgarður, where Sigmundur Brestisson, who christianized the Faroes, according to Færeyinga saga and local tradition, built the first church of the islands, at which he was buried. On Sandoy we visited the historical villages of Húsavík and Sandur. In Húsavík we were informed about the wealthy and famous Húsfrúgvin í Húsavík and presented to the remains of her large farm buildings. Continuing investigations during the last 35 years and the complexity of the archaeological records have made the village of Sandur one of the islands key archaeological sites, which have shown potential for multi-disciplinary archaeological and environmental research.

The full-day excursion to Eysturoy took us to Eiði, where archaeological excavations in the 1970s revealed Viking and medieval settlement remains and in the 1980s an early shieling site at Argisbrekka by the lake of Eiðisvatn. From there we drove to Leirvik to visit the Viking farm at Toftanes, excavated between 1982-87, and other interesting sites in this village, i.a. the well preserved ruin of a medieval chapel, Bønhústoft, apparently demolished during the Reformation.

It had been arranged that those who wished might stay on for the St. Olaf’s Festival, and a lot of the members took this opportunity and did not leave the Faroes until July 30 or 31. The weather stayed very fine all the time, and it was our impression that the members were very satisfied with the whole arrangement. And the organizers want to express their gratitude to those members who afterwards sent us so many positive letters.

The success of the congress was due to the efforts of many people and institutions. The organizers want to thank Føroya Sparikassi, Letterstedtska Föreningen, and Mentamálaráðið for their generous financial support. We want to thank Atlantic Airways, Fóm Ísur, Føroya Banki, Føroya Bjór, Føroya Handilsskúli, Norðurlandahúsið, Restorffs Bryggjarí, Strandferðslan, and Tekniski Skúli for their generosity and cooperation. And at last we especially want to thank the staff of Skúlaheimið for their hospitality, and the friendly readiness all our wishes were met with.

Arne Thorsteinsson and Símun V. Arge, the Organising Committee.

Congress Proceedings

Viking and Norse in the North Atlantic. Select Papers from the Proceedings of the Fourteenth Viking Congress, Tórshavn, 19-30 July 2001. Ed. Andras Mortensen and Símun V. Arge. Annales Societatis Scientiarum Færoensis Supplementum XLIV. Tórshavn 2005.

Contents

Foreword p. 9

Chapter 1. Knut Helle The position of the Faeroes and other ‘tributary lands’ in the medieval Norwegian dominion p. 11

Chapter 2. Símun V. Arge Cultural Landscapes and Cultural Environmental issues in the Faroes p. 22

Chapter 3. Arne Thorsteinsson „There is another set of small islands“ p. 39

Chapter 4. Else Mundal Færeyinga saga – a Fine Piece of Literature in Pieces p. 43

Chapter 5. Andrew Wawn Færeyinga saga: Victorian Visions and Versions p. 52

Chapter 6. Richard North Money and religion in Færeyinga saga p. 60

Chapter 7. Gro Steinsland The Mythology of Rulership and the Saga of the Faroe Islanders p. 76

Chapter 8. Andras Mortensen One Facet of the Tendency in Færeyinga Saga p. 87

Chapter 9. Ditlev L. Dall Mahler & Arne Jouttijärvi Experiments with peat charcoal and iron production in the Faeroe Islands p. 92

Chapter 10. Anna Katrin Matras The Viking Settlement „Niðri á Toft“, Kvívík, Faroe Islands- a reanalysis p. 99

Chapter 11. Marie Stoklund Faroese Runic Inscriptions p. 109

Chapter 12. James Graham-Campbell, University College London The Viking-Age Gold and Silver of the North Atlantic Region p. 125

Chapter 13. Mark Blackburn Coinage and Contacts in the North Atlantic during the Seventh to Mid-Tenth Centuries p. 141

Chapter 14. Gillian Fellows-Jensen Some new thoughts on personal names in the Viking colonies p. 52

Chapter 15. Ian Fisher Cross-currents in North Atlantic Sculpture p. 160

Chapter 16. Paul C. Buckland, Eva Panagiotakopulu Archaeology and the Palaeoecology of the Norse Atlantic Islands: a Review p. 16

Chapter 17. Else Roesdahl Walrus ivory – demand, supply, workshops, and Greenland p. 182

Chapter 18. Þórgunnur Snædal Between Rök and Skagafjörður – Icelandic runes and their connection with the Scandinavian runes of the Viking period p. 192

Chapter19. Guðmundur Ólafsson New Evidence for the Dating of Iceland’s Settlement. A Viking-age discovery in the cave Víðgelmir p. 200

Chapter 20. Guðrún Sveinbjarnardóttir The use of geothermal resources at Reykholt in Borgarfjörður in the medieval period p. 208

Chapter 21.  Anton Holt Gaulverjabæjarsjóðurinn p. 217

Chapter 22. Svavar Sigmundsson Icelandic place-names in North Atlantic light p. 229

Chapter 23. Steffen Stummann HansenTHE POMPEJI OF ICELAND – and a small Scandinavian congress of archaeologists, who were digging instead of eating dinners p. 234

Chapter 24. Val Turner, Steve Dockeril, Julie BondViking Settlement in an IronAge Village: Old Scatness, Shetland p. 245

Chapter 25. Doreen Waugh From Hermaness to Dunrossness: some Shetland ness-names p. 250

Chapter 26. Peder Gammeltoft ‘Look now, stranger, at this island’. A brief survey of the island-names of Shetland and Orkney p. 257

Chapter 27. James H. Barrett Economic Intensification in Viking Age and Medieval Orkney, Scotland: Excavations at Quoygrew p. 264

Chapter 28. Andrew Jennings and Arne KruseAn Ethnic Enigma – Norse, Pict and Gael in the Western Isles p. 284

Chapter 29. Olwyn Owen Scotland’s Viking ‘towns’: a contradiction in terms? p. 297

Chapter 30. Lesley Abrams Scandinavian Place-Names and Settlement-History: Flegg, Norfolk, and East Anglia in the Viking Age p. 307

Chapter 31. John SheehanViking-age hoards in Scotland and Ireland: regional diversities p. 323

Chapter 32. Stephen H. Harrison College Green – A Neglected ‘Viking’ Cemetery at Dublin p. 329

Chapter 33. Henrik Williams Name borrowing among the Vikings p. 340

Chapter 34. Jan BillKiloran bay revisited – confirmation of a doubtful boat-grave p. 345

Chapter 35. Ingvild Øye Farming and farming systems in Norse societies of the North Atlantic p. 359

Chapter 36. Lena Peterson Research report: Dictionary of proper names in Scandinavian Viking Age runic inscriptions p. 371

Chapter 37. Neil Price Cognition, Culture and Context: Observations on the ‘New’ Viking Archaeology p. 375

Chapter 38. Birgitta Hårdh Uppåkra in the Viking Age p. 383

Chapter 39. Torsten Edgren Kyrksundet in Hitis, SW Finland. A Viking Age resting place and tradingpost on the sailing route to the East p. 392

Chapter 40. Anne Pedersen The Metal Detector and the Viking Age in Denmark p. 402

Chapter 41. Anne-Sofie Gräslund The watchful dragon. Aspects of the Conversion of Scandinavia p. 412

Chapter 42.  Niels Lund Frisia – a Viking nest? p. 422

Chapter 43. Jayne Carroll Narrative and direct address in skaldic verse p. 427

Chapter 44. Howard B. Clarke ‘Go then South to Dublin; that is now the Most Praiseworthy Voyage.’ What would Brynjólfr’s Son have found there? p. 441