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Arni Magnusson 9 1
decided to extend his stay in Germany to pursue his own
studies and interests. Ami's appointment had caused
some criticism, chiefly because he had never had anything
printed. We may presume that it was for this reason
that Ami decided to publish an edition of some Danish
chronicles under the title of Incerti auctoris Chronica
Danoruni et pr(ecipue Sialandice. This book appeared in
1695 while Ami was in Leipzig.
Ami returned to Copenhagen late in the year 1696 and
resumed his duties with Moth. In 1697 he was appointed
secretary in the royal archives, a post which he held to his
death.
It was about this time that the only book written by
Ami Magnusson appeared in print in Copenhagen. It
was almost certainly written at the request of Moth who
had been one of the judges in the case. It deals with
a case of witchcraft, or obsessio diabolica as Ami
calls it, in the little town of Thisted in Jutland. The
delinquents had been justly sentenced to imprisonment
and it is clear that Moth, who trusted Ami's common sense
and knew that he was free from the superstition of the age,
considered him the right person to give a reasoned and at
the same time a learned account of the affair. The
pamphlet, 80 pages in small octavo, appeared in 1699 with
the title Kort og sandfcerdig Beretning om den oidiudraabte
Besattelse udi Thisted.
As already mentioned, Ami spent the best part of ten
years, 1702-1712, in Iceland on a royal mission. There
is no need to go further into his work during these years
except to say that, in spite of his official duties, Ami
found time to pursue his life's interest of collecting,
copying and studying manuscripts and other documents
on the history of Iceland, its language and literature.
The best known outcome of Ami's and Pall Vidalin's work
in those years are the two monumental works not
published until the present century, i.e. the M anntal of
1703, and the Jaroab6k now printed in II volumes.