Surtshellir
Encyclopedia
Surtshellir is a lava cave
located in western Iceland
, around 60 km from the settlement of Borgarnes
. Approximately a mile in length, it is the longest such cave in the country. While mentioned in the medieval historical-geographical work Landnámabók
, Eggert Ólafsson
was the first to give a thorough documentation of the cave in his 1750 travels of the region. It is named after the fire giant Surtr
, a prominent figure in Norse mythology
, who is prophesied to one day engulf the world in the fire of his flaming sword.
Being of volcanic origin, the walls of the interior are composed of vitrified layers of magma
and basalt
. The roof of the cave is about 10 metres high at the highest point, and the tunnels are around 15m broad at their greatest width. The floor is covered in a perpetual sheeting of ice and fallen fragments of solidified lava, and large ice speleothem
s are common within the cave. The height of the roof is highly variable throughout the cave, and at the latter extremities is only 2–4 m.
In the 10th century, the cave and the passages that lead out from the main cavern were used as hideouts for outcasts and bandits who would steal livestock from the farmers and shepherds living in the area. Evidence of their existence has been found in the form of the bones of sheep and oxen eaten for food in several of the tunnels; one of the same tunnels had also been adorned with a human-made door.
The cave itself has long been a source of superstition for the Icelanders inhabiting the nearby mountains. Eggert Ólafsson recalled having been warned by locals of the ghosts that were said to dwell within and was assured that his party would be killed by them if they were to enter. Surtr himself was said to have once lived within the cave and, being a fire giant, to have been the cause of the cave's creation.
Surtshellir is in close proximity to another lava cave, Stefánshellir, with which it forms a complex referred to as the Surtshellir-Stefánshellir system.
Lava cave
A lava cave is any cave formed in volcanic rock, although in typical usage it is reserved for caves formed by volcanic processes, which are more properly termed volcanic caves...
located in western Iceland
Iceland
Iceland , described as the Republic of Iceland, is a Nordic and European island country in the North Atlantic Ocean, on the Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Iceland also refers to the main island of the country, which contains almost all the population and almost all the land area. The country has a population...
, around 60 km from the settlement of Borgarnes
Borgarnes
Borgarnes is a town located on a peninsula at the shore of Borgarfjörður in Iceland.It has a population of 1,763 . The town is located 60 km north of the capital Reykjavík and is connected to other places in Iceland through the second largest bridge in Iceland, Borgarfjarðarbrú...
. Approximately a mile in length, it is the longest such cave in the country. While mentioned in the medieval historical-geographical work Landnámabók
Landnámabók
Landnámabók , often shortened to Landnáma, is a medieval Icelandic written work describing in considerable detail the settlement of Iceland by the Norse in the 9th and 10th centuries AD.-Landnáma:...
, Eggert Ólafsson
Eggert Ólafsson
Eggert Ólafsson was an Icelandic explorer, writer and conservator of the Icelandic language.He was the son of a farmer from Svefneyjar in Breiðafjörður. He studied natural sciences, Classics, Grammar, Law and Agriculture at the University of Copenhagen.Ólafsson wrote on a wide range of topics...
was the first to give a thorough documentation of the cave in his 1750 travels of the region. It is named after the fire giant Surtr
Surtr
In Norse mythology, Surtr or Surt is an eldjötunn. Surtr is attested in the Poetic Edda, compiled in the 13th century from earlier traditional sources, and the Prose Edda, written in the 13th century by Snorri Sturluson...
, a prominent figure in Norse mythology
Norse mythology
Norse mythology, a subset of Germanic mythology, is the overall term for the myths, legends and beliefs about supernatural beings of Norse pagans. It flourished prior to the Christianization of Scandinavia, during the Early Middle Ages, and passed into Nordic folklore, with some aspects surviving...
, who is prophesied to one day engulf the world in the fire of his flaming sword.
Being of volcanic origin, the walls of the interior are composed of vitrified layers of magma
Magma
Magma is a mixture of molten rock, volatiles and solids that is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and is expected to exist on other terrestrial planets. Besides molten rock, magma may also contain suspended crystals and dissolved gas and sometimes also gas bubbles. Magma often collects in...
and basalt
Basalt
Basalt is a common extrusive volcanic rock. It is usually grey to black and fine-grained due to rapid cooling of lava at the surface of a planet. It may be porphyritic containing larger crystals in a fine matrix, or vesicular, or frothy scoria. Unweathered basalt is black or grey...
. The roof of the cave is about 10 metres high at the highest point, and the tunnels are around 15m broad at their greatest width. The floor is covered in a perpetual sheeting of ice and fallen fragments of solidified lava, and large ice speleothem
Speleothem
A speleothem , commonly known as a cave formation, is a secondary mineral deposit formed in a cave. Speleothems are typically formed in limestone or dolostone solutional caves.-Origin and composition:...
s are common within the cave. The height of the roof is highly variable throughout the cave, and at the latter extremities is only 2–4 m.
In the 10th century, the cave and the passages that lead out from the main cavern were used as hideouts for outcasts and bandits who would steal livestock from the farmers and shepherds living in the area. Evidence of their existence has been found in the form of the bones of sheep and oxen eaten for food in several of the tunnels; one of the same tunnels had also been adorned with a human-made door.
The cave itself has long been a source of superstition for the Icelanders inhabiting the nearby mountains. Eggert Ólafsson recalled having been warned by locals of the ghosts that were said to dwell within and was assured that his party would be killed by them if they were to enter. Surtr himself was said to have once lived within the cave and, being a fire giant, to have been the cause of the cave's creation.
Surtshellir is in close proximity to another lava cave, Stefánshellir, with which it forms a complex referred to as the Surtshellir-Stefánshellir system.