A reconstructed Viking longhouse near Stong, Iceland. Interior of the great hall.

The Stong Viking farmhouse or longhouse re-construction. Great hall and bed chamber. Iceland.

In 1939 a the remains of Viking age farmhouse was discovered and excavated at Stöng in Thjórsárdalur valley. It was believed to have been buried in volcanic ash in 1104. As part of the 1100th anniversary of Icelandic Settlement a reconstruction of the house and buildings was created a few kilometres away in 1974. This photograph from 1987 shows the Great Hall, with a central fire pit, sleeping benches either side, raised up from the dirt floor, and the bed chamber with doors for the farm owner on the left. As Iceland is largely un-forested timber had to be imported, as it would have been in the Viking Age. The site is the property of the National Museum of Iceland.