SAGA-BOOK - Viking Society Web Publications

Observations on the Discoveries of the Norsemen 175
sailed with a north wind". Is it also so certain that
dagr does not signify half a period of 24 hours, day or
night, and that they "varu Uti tvau dregr, al'5r peir sau
land" (Gra:nlendinga saga, ch. 3) does not mean: "They
were at sea one day and night before sighting land", and
not "They were at sea two days -" (p. 149)?
The expression "Norseman" is a little loaded as a
generic term for all Atlantic seafarers of the Viking age,
but they were all Vikings, whatever their origins. The
last decade has brought the Viking age well into the
limelight in the West, and much publicity has been given
to this stirring period, although the quality of this has
varied. The Kirk Douglas film, "The Vikings", must be
one of the most pitiable productions of this Viking mania,
while Gwyn Jones's book, on the other hand, is one of the
most delightful. In the history section, he follows the
history of Viking explorations in the light of the latest
investigations. Here, despite its comparative brevity,
we find a well-organised, thorough and attractively
assembled survey of those events. The Viking age is the
first great period of exploration in the history of the West.
It was at this time that Europeans - in their thousandsfirst
emigrated across the ocean and began regular voyages
over the open sea. The Faroes and later Iceland were
the most important departure points for these journeys.
Iceland.
The discovery and settlement of Iceland are subjects
that have been treated by historians from the twelfth
century onwards. Professor Jones's chapter on this
subject is a little dated. Investigations in 1939 showed
that what had previously been thought to be temple
remains at Hofsstaoir, near Myvatn, were probably
remains of a hall, perhaps a building in which sacrificial
feasts were held. It is consequently not entirely safe to
give the picture of these remnants (p. 27) the title of
"Norse temple" He has also overemphasised the lack