Report of Archaeofauna from Undir Sandmúla and Undir Bálabrekku, Bárðdælahreppur, N Iceland

Summary

Small archaeofauna from two highland sites located above 400 m above sea level, over 100 km inland in the upper reaches of the Skjálfandafljót river valley indicate the early presence of human settlement in this far inland area. While heavily deflated, the site of Undir Sandmúla produced an archaeofauna from stratified context directly above the Landnam sequence tephra, probably dating to the late 9th or early 10th century. This collection is from a highly burnt ”fireplace cleaning” deposit which limits the survival of fish and bird bones, but a quantifiable number of mammal bone fragments could be identified. The domestic mammal assemblage strongly indicates the presence of a full farm with some variant of the mix of species associated with the Settlement Age in Iceland (cattle, horse, pig, sheep).

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Contact(s): Thomas McGovern

Lab Director(s): Thomas McGovern

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