Hrísheimar 2004 Interim Report

The excavations at Hrísheimar have now been in progress for four years. The focus of the work for the first two years was more on surveying and test trenching for assessment than large scale excavation. In 2003 and 2004 the work increased with the opening of two large excavation areas.

In 2003 there were two main excavation areas; one was approximately 60 m west of the farm mound; the other was just by the farm mound on its eastern side. The areas were individually sub-divided and each was given an area code. The area west of the farm mound was given codes A, B and C while the other area contained codes H and L. A large trench was cut in an easterly direction from area L and was given the code Q. The 2003 season identified an iron ore processing and iron-producing site in areas A– C. The number of furnaces, 19 small and 2 large, indicate that iron was being produced on a large scale and probably over a long period of time. In area H a sunken feature building was partially excavated and in area L well stratified midden deposits were excavated(Edvardsson, R. et al., 2003).

In 2004, work in areas H and L continued. The main aim of the was to fully excavate the sunken feature building in area H and continue exposing and excavating the midden deposits. Other objectives were to obtain a better understanding of the relationship of the thick midden deposits sampled in 2003 in area L with the tephra layers observed in the lower end of the long Q trench, especially the Landnám sequence and the early-mid 10th c. Veiðivötn grey-green tephra. Also to understand the relationships between the midden deposits overlying (and underlying) the multipl turf structures and wall lines that had appeared in the 2003 L-trench.

The methodology for the excavation at followed the methodology already established at the site, i.e. single context excavation and recording. The site was divided into 5 * 5 planning areas and each archaeological unit was recorded and given a unique context number.

The excavation at was a part of the now well-established field school. The total number of students on the site was six. The students came from Brooklyn College, Hunter College and The Graduate Center, which are all institutions within the City University of New York.

The Hrísheimar field school and excavation were led by Ragnar Edvardsson (Graduate Center, CUNY), as well as being led by such other academics as Thomas H. McGovern (Hunter College, CUNY) who was in charge of the midden excavation, Colleen Batey (FSÍ/Glasgow University) and Ian Simpson (Stirling University).

Hrísheimar Iceland Mývatnssveit

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