LEIF ERIKSSON MONUMENTS PAGES
| Place |
Artist |
Date |
Type |
Eiríksstaðir (Búðardalur) (Iceland)
|
Nína Sæmundsson |
2000 (1930) |
Statue |
Description:
Small bronze statue of Leifur standing on the bow of a ship by the Icelandic sculptor Nína Sæmundsson (1892-1965) near the birth place of Leifur in Eiríksstaðir at Haukadalur near Búðardalur.
This statue received the second prize in a competition held in 1930 in the USA on the occasion of the 1000th anniversary of Iceland's parliament, the Alþing. The first prize was won by Stirling Calder, his statue is in Reykjavik.
Inscriptions:
Front:
LEIFUR
EIRÍKSSON
|
Back:
NINA SÆMUNDSSON
1930
DALABYGGÐ
2000
|
Notes
Eiríkur raudi Þorvaldsson lived in Haukadalur valley in Dalasýsla, at a farm called Eiríksstaðir. There he married Þjódhildur, daughter of a local farmer, and in AD 984-5 they pioneered the settlement of Greenland. His son Leifur Eiríksson was born in Eiríksstaðir around 980.
The Leifur Eiríksson Heritage Project built for the 1,000th anniversary of the discovery of America, a reconstruction of Eiríksstaðir, the Eiríksstaðir-The Leif Eriksson Museum.
Photo left: In the foreground the location of the original farm. Lower on the slope the reconstructed house.
Helga and Þorgrimur act as guides for the tourists at Eiríksstaðir
Peter van der Krogt in Viking costume (a tourist trap?)
Source(s):
- Photos: Peter van der Krogt, 10 June 2003.
