VSF 2010 Report - Nabo

uildings were considered too extravagant and expensive, and the preist Hjalti Þirsteinsson
received permission to reduce them in size.
What the rich textual sources fail to explain is why the seemingly infertile farm of
Vatnsfjörður was chosen to be a chieftain’s seat to begin with, and what the factors and
processes were that led to its flourishing as an economic, social, and cultural powerhouse
between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries. These are important questions, at the root
of of our understanding of the colonisation of Iceland, the use and control of its landscape
and resources, and the development of the power structures that came to govern the lives of
Icelanders in the Middle Ages. Realising that the texual evidence needed to be integrated
with archaeological and environmental research if these questions were to be answered, the
Medieval Westfjords Society teamed up with the Institute of Archaeology of Iceland and,
in 2003, with an international, interdisciplinary team of archaeologists and natural
scientists, began the work of excavating at the site of Vatnsfjörður and conducting
landscape surveys in the surrouding region. The eighth field season of archaeological
excavation and landscape survey at the farm a of Vatnsfjörður and the valley of
Vatnsfjarðardalur took place from July 26-August 20, 2010, the preliminary results of
which are provided in this report.
An important aspect of the project is the sharing of knowledge about the cultural
heritage of this part of the Westfjords with residents of the local community and with
visitors, and to actively stimulate heritage tourism in the region. The project team has
therefore developed a public archaeology programme that includes an annual Open Day,
multi-lingual interpretation signs at the site, and a pamphlet about the site that is distributed
at tourist information centres around the country as well as hotels in the Westfjord region.
Several several dozen visitors came to the site in 2010, as well as school children from
Reykhólasveit and Súðavíkurhreppur Work Schools, all of whom were given tours of the
site.
The Vatnsfjörður Project is made possible by the cooperation of a large team of
professionals, volunteers, and students from Iceland, North America, and Europe, who
contribute enormous amounts of time, expertise and labour to the project. The project also
owes its existence and success to the Icelandic church and to the former (now retired) priest
of the Vatnsfjörður church, Baldur Vilhelmsson, his wife Ólöf Salvarsdóttir, and their
family, who have kindly permitted us to excavate at Vatnsfjörður, and who have provided
us with facilities and logistical support in the field. In 2010, the Vatnsfjörður excavation
was funded by the Icelandic parliament (Alþingi), the University Centre of the Westfjords
(Háskólasetrið Vestfjarða), the Medieval Westfjords Society (Vestfirðir á Miðöldum), the
Icelandic Archaeological Fund (Fornleifasjóður), and the Royal Society of Edinburgh.
The project received invaluable support in 2010 in the form of staff, facilities,
equipment, and logistical help from the Institute of Archaeology, Iceland (Fornleifastofnun
Íslands), the National Museum of Iceland (Þjóðminjasafn Íslands), the Centre for Research
in the Humanities, University of Iceland (Hugvísindastofnun HÍ), the University of
Aberdeen, the Northern Science and Education Centre at the City University of New York,
the North Atlantic Biocultural Organisation (NABO), Hotel Reykjanes (Ferðaþjónustan
Reykjanesi), Atvinnuþróunarfélag Vestfirðinga, Súðavíkurhreppur, the Natural History
Museum in Bolungarvík (Náttúrustofu Vesfjarða í Bolungarvík), the Maritime Museum in
Ísafjörður (Byggðasafnið á Ísafirði), Biskupsstofa, and the Education Centre of the
Westfjords (Fræðslumiðstöð Vestfjarða). The project team is also grateful to Ragnar
Edvardsson, now at Fornleifavernd rísikins (The Archaeological Heritage Agency of
Iceland), for his continued interest in and support for the project.
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