Old churches at the Eyjafjarðará

Leaving Akureyri, I first made a round trip south into the Eyjafjarðará valley to see a place called Saurbær. Konrad had been staying there on 22 July 1858. In exectly this year 1858, the current church was built in Saurbaer. What is special is that this church still exists as a turf church today; it was not replaced by a wooden church like 99% of churches in Iceland were.

This detail shows you how good the wall is in condition. I'm actually not sure if this is all 100% original, it looks too good in condition. But even if it has been partially rebuilt, the style is original. The walls had to be this thick to be strong enough to bear their own weight, plus the weight of the roof.

Crossing the river to the other side of the valley, I reached Möðruvellir. This place also has a church that is worth a visit because of a rare and exquisite 15th century stone relief altarpiece. The church was locked when I came, but a little boy who lived at the farmhouse next to it was quick when he saw me arrive and being interested in the church. In a minute he brought a key and unlocked the church door to let me inside. I admired the altarpiece, whispering first a "wow" and then, after closer inspection, "it's really beautiful". The boy nodded in agreement.

The next church on my way was Munkaþverá. Here was once a monastery, and they have a statue of Jón Arason (1484-1550) who was a Catholic bishop and became known for his struggle against the spread of Protestantism in Iceland. This was not good for him as it made him enemy with his sovereign King Christian III of Denmark. In the end the recalcitrant bishop was caught and without a trial they chopped off his head.