The poet’s house 

The poet’s house 

Halldór Laxness (1902-1998) is undoubtedly Iceland’s greatest poet of the 20th century. He is the only Icelandic writer to have received the Nobel Prize for Literature, he received it in 1955. Ten years earlier, the poet had built himself a house, Gljúfrasteinn, for himself and his family at Laxnes in Mosfellsdalur, where he grew up, 20 km / 12 mi from Reykjavík. In 2002, the Icelandic state bought Gljúfrasteinn, but previously the poet’s family had donated all of Gljúfrasteinn’s contents. Two years later, in 2004, a museum was opened there in memory of the poet. Gljúrasteinn was both a home and a workplace for Halldór and his family for more than half a century. The house and living quarters have been left unchanged. The museum is open every day except Monday from 10 am to 4 pm.

 

Gljúfrasteinn
The livingroom at Gljúfrasteinn
Halldór’s books have been published in many languages, here is just a fraction of the published books by Laxness
The poet’s library in his studio
Halldór and his wife Auður Laxness with the Nobel Prize in Stockholm in 1955

Mosfellsbær 15/09/2022 : A7R IV, A7C – FE 1.8/14mm GM, FE 1.2/50mm GM Photographs & text: Páll Stefánsson