One Hundred and Fifty Meters of History
The first—and thus oldest—street in Reykjavik is Adalstræti. While only 150 meters long, the ancient strip is rich in history and historical buildings. On the northern side of the street are the oldest human habitation remains found in Iceland, the ruins of a hall, possibly belonging to the first settlers, Ingólfur Arnarson and Hallveig Fróðadóttir, from around 874 AD. The ruins, which were excavated over 20 years ago, are now on permanent display at the corner of Adalstræti and Kirkjustræti, in a museum managed by the Reykjavik City Museum.
The museum continues, so to speak, tracing the city’s history in one of the oldest intact buildings in the country at Adalstræti 10, a house built in 1762 for the operations of the enterprise called Innréttingar (The Interiors), whose aim was to establish factory production in Iceland and thus work towards the restoration of the Icelandic economy. Through these operations would manifest the first indications that Reykjavik was transforming from a village to a town, and then to a city. The operations of the Interiors would drastically change Reykjavik, eventually making the village the capital of the republic. The main activity in Reykjavik was wool processing, but extensive sulphur production in Krýsuvík and Húsavík was also maintained by the company.
The Interiors were the brainchild of one Skúli Magnússon, often called Skúli the Sheriff as that was his office and appointment by the King of Denmark, and to this day he is commonly known by his efforts as “the Father of Reykjavik.” His statue stands in paved garden called Fógetagarðurinn (The Sheriff Garden), which is, of course, by Adalstræti.
A sweet pig, situated in front of the eponymous gastropub.
