Archaeologists Discover Remains of Viking Age Longhouse in Reykjavik, Iceland

Archaeologists in Iceland's capital, Reykjavik, have had a number of exciting new finds on their hands as of late. Most notably for the purposes of Mimisbrunnr.info, one of these major new finds is a longhouse from the Viking Age unearthed in central Reykjavik. The longhouse was in use from the 10th the 13th centuries and was 20 meters (about 65.6 feet) in length. It featured a fire pit over 5 meters (about 16.5 feet) long.

Various objects were found at the site of the longhouse, including a silver ring and weaving tools. The site is to be the site of a new Íslandshótel hotel, where the longhouse remains will feature in an exhibition.

The oldest longhouse discovered in Iceland (dating from the 9th century) was also found in Reykjavik in 2001 and is now a part of the Reykjavík 871±2 exhibit, open to the public.

Sources:
* "Viking-age hut found in Reykjavik" at mbl.is
* "Two historic discoveries in Reykjavik" at mbl.is

Ásatrúarfélagið Temple at Reykjavík Construction to Begin in February

Reykjavík, Iceland: The Icelandic National Broadcasting Service (Ríkisútvarpið; RÚV) reports that Iceland's Ásatrúarfélagið, the largest Germanic neopagan organization in Iceland, will begin construction of its first structure for worship, a modern temple (or, less ambiguously, a modern hof), in February in Reykjavík.

Hilmar Örn Hilmarsson, allsherjargoði of the Ásatrúarfélagið, says that the erection of such a temple is a historic event because no such temple has been erected in Northern Europe since the Temple at Uppsala in 1070 ("Í Norður-Evrópu hefur ekki staðið hof síðan hofið í Uppsölum í Svíþjóð var byggt 1070, þannig að þetta er heimssögulegur viðburður").