Every month the National and University Library of Iceland picks one item from its collections and tells its story: a manuscript, photograph, map, poster or letter that has lain untouched for decades. Some of the items are well known; others have never been shown in public.
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Þórður Jónsson’s episode about Fjalla-Bensi – the origin of Advent
Advent, the novel by Gunnar Gunnarsson (1889–1975), is the Icelandic Christmas story that has traveled farthest and been read in more languages than the author’s other stories. The beginning of Advent has been traced to the short story “Den gode Hyrde” which appeared in the Danish magazine Julesne in 1931. Gunnar often drew material from…
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Ferðalok. ÍB 13 fol [Journey’s end]
A Jónas Hallgrímsson autograph manuscript. Jónas was a much-loved and influential romantic poet and prose writer of the early nineteenth century, and also a renowned naturalist. He is certainly the best-loved and most admired poet of modern Iceland: ástmögur þjóðarinnar (‘the darling of the nation’). Jónas grew up in Iceland and later studied at the University…
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Traits of Thorvaldsen’s life as an artist and his surroundings by Carl Frederik Wilckens
The City of Copenhagen decided to give Icelanders a statue of Bertel Thorvaldsen (1770-1844) on the occasion of the 1874 national holiday and the 1000th anniversary of the settlement of Iceland. The statue was delivered on August 7, 1874, but was unveiled and inaugurated at Austurvöllur square on Thorvaldsen’s birthday, November 19, 1875. The statue…
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Record of books given to the National library in 1874
Jón Árnason was a librarian at the National Library of Iceland from 1848 to 1887. He was the first employee of the library but before that the board of the library had taken care of it as a side job. The library was officially established in 1818 and opened for use in 1825. It was…
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Manuscripts of Lofsöngur / Ó, guð vors lands
Lofsöngur (Hymn), Iceland’s national anthem, is a hymn by Matthías Jochumsson set to music by Sveinbjörn Sveinbjörnsson, both written for the national festival marking the thousandth anniversary of the settlement of Iceland in 1874. Words and music were first performed by a mixed choir at a festival service that began at 10:30 in Reykjavík Cathedral…
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Reykjavík map and Njóla by Björn Gunnlaugsson
Björn Gunnlaugsson (1788-1876) was said to be the leading mathematician and astronomer in Iceland in his day. He was an active surveyor and cartographer and the first real teacher of mathematical learning in this country. Furthermore, he focused on informing the public about natural science, both in formal and informal terms. Björn was philosophically minded,…
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Sketches of the coat of arms of Iceland by Tryggvi Magnússon
Sketches of the coat of arms of Iceland by Tryggvi Magnússon are preserved in the manuscript collection of the Library. Tryggvi made numerous sketches for the coat of arms until it got its final form. When the republic was restored in 1944, Björn Þórðarson entrusted the Prime Minister with three heads of ministries; Vigfús Einarsson,…
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Arnbjörg æruprýdd dándis-kvinna á Vestfjördum Islands. Lbs 2405 4to
This year marks the 300th anniversary of the birth of Reverend Björn Halldórsson (1724-1794) from Sauðlauksdalur. Björn Halldórsson was amongst the most enlightened men of his time in terms of his attitudes towards agriculture and livestock husbandry. Björn wrote an instruction book for housewives around 1780, which was published in print in 1843 in Búnaðarrit…
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Fálkinn’s album catalog 1956
The first Icelandic record was 78 rpm, recorded in Copenhagen in 1910. From the middle of the 20th century, there were big changes in the distribution of music when slower and more flexible vinyl records appeared. Íslenzkir tónar released the first Icelandic 45 rpm records in 1954. The first 33 rpm record (LP) was released…
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The Man Outside – stage design by Lothar Grund
Currently there is an exhibition of Lothar Grund’s works in the library, where you can e.g. see drawings for the National Theatre’s staging of The Man Outside in (Draußen vor der Tür) by Wolfgang Brochert in 1954. Lothar Grund was born in Schwerin, Germany, on October 22nd, 1923. In 1950 he moved to Iceland in…
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Kristín Vídalín Jacobson’s book of poetry
This month there are 160 years since the birth of Kristín Vídalín Jacobson, the founder and first chairman of the women’s charity Hringurinn that celebrated it’s 120-year anniversary last month. She also founded and sat on the board of the Reykjavík Women’s Association (BKR). Kristín was also a trained painter and is thought to have…
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Hringurinn
Hringurinn, a Women’s Society in Reykjavík, celebrates its 120th anniversary on January 26th. It is a non-profit charity organization established in 1904 with the aim to help those in financial needs whilst being hospitalized with an illness. Its archival collection was donated to Kvennasögusafn (the Women’s History Archives) in the early 2000s following an impressive…