“Icelanders have contributed two distinctive forms to the history of architecture: on the one hand, the turf house, and on the other, the corrugated-iron-clad timber house. When the so-called Swiss style reached Iceland from the Nordic countries around 1890, Icelandic master builders began cladding grand wooden houses with corrugated iron. When Scandinavians see these houses today, they are often astonished, as they are not accustomed to seeing Swiss-style houses clad in corrugated iron — yet many such houses can be found in Reykjavík’s city centre,” says Magnús Skúlason, Chairman of the Architectural Heritage Committee from 2013 to 2016.
Corrugated-iron-clad houses are part of our history. They can be found all around the country, from Aðalvík in the Westfjords to Þórshöfn in the northeast. Icelandic Times / Land & Saga did not have to travel far, however. Wandering through Vesturbær, Þingholt, and Kvosin in the capital, we discovered the beauty of… corrugated iron that endures for a hundred years.
Most of these houses are now on their second cladding, as the majority were built between 1880 and 1915 — long, long before our time.
Photos & text : Páll Stefánsson
Reykjavík : 28/02/2026 : GFX100 II – 1.7/5mm
