Viðey og Esja
Viðey is the largest island of the Kollafjörður Bay in Iceland, near the capital of Reykjavík.
It is the location of the Imagine Peace Tower, which is a "Tower of Light" envisioned and built by Yoko Ono, widow of Beatle John Lennon. According to the Associated Press: "The tower is a beam of light, radiating from a wishing well bearing the words "imagine peace" in 24 languages. It is lit each year between his birthday, October 9, and his death December 8."
Viðey was inhabited from soon after the settlement of Iceland around 900 AD. In 1539 the monastery came to a dramatic end when it was raided by Danish soldiers, when the Reformation was imposed on the Icelandic church.
For the next two centuries Viðey belonged to the royal estate of Bessastaðir. A home for paupers was located on the island.
Skúli Magnússon was the first Icelander to become Treasurer, and for half a century he was one of the most powerful men in the country. He had Viðeyjarstofa (Viðey House) built as his official residence; it was completed in 1755.
But Skúli did not only make his mark on Viðey. He also founded the first industrial enterprise in Iceland, the Innréttingar woollen workshops, which led to the beginning of urban development in Reykjavík. Hence he is known as the Father of Reykjavík.
In 1794 Ólafur Stephensen, the first Icelander to be Governor of Iceland, moved to Viðey, where he lived until his death in 1812.
In 1901 Eggert Briem and his wife Katrín Pétursdóttur started large-scale farming on Viðey. They built a cattleshed housing 48 cows, and sold about 200,000 litres of milk per year to the inhabitants of Reykjavík.
In 1907 Pétur J. Thorsteinsson and Thor Jensen founded the P. J. Thorsteinsson & Co. fishing company, with share capital of a million krónur, a huge amount at the time. Hence it was always known as Milljónafélagið (the Million Corporation). It was located at the eastern end of the island, where a village of houses and fish processing facilities developed, adjacent to the best harbour facilities on Faxaflói Bay. At that time Reykjavík had no proper harbour.
The Million Corp. went out of business in 1914, but fish processing continued. In 1924 the Kári company made the island its fis-hing headquart-ers, and the population of the village rose to a high point of 138 in 1930. A year later the fishing company failed, after which the islanders began to move away. By 1943 the village was uninhabited.
Farming continued on Viðey until the 1950s, after which the island was uninhabited.
By 1968, when Viðey House and the church passed to the National Museum of Iceland, the buildings were severely dilapidated. In 1986 the Icelandic state presented the buildings to the City of Reykjavík. Renovation work on the buildings was completed in 1988.
Viðey og Esja
Viðey is the largest island of the Kollafjörður Bay in Iceland, near the capital of Reykjavík.
It is the location of the Imagine Peace Tower, which is a "Tower of Light" envisioned and built by Yoko Ono, widow of Beatle John Lennon. According to the Associated Press: "The tower is a beam of light, radiating from a wishing well bearing the words "imagine peace" in 24 languages. It is lit each year between his birthday, October 9, and his death December 8."
Viðey was inhabited from soon after the settlement of Iceland around 900 AD. In 1539 the monastery came to a dramatic end when it was raided by Danish soldiers, when the Reformation was imposed on the Icelandic church.
For the next two centuries Viðey belonged to the royal estate of Bessastaðir. A home for paupers was located on the island.
Skúli Magnússon was the first Icelander to become Treasurer, and for half a century he was one of the most powerful men in the country. He had Viðeyjarstofa (Viðey House) built as his official residence; it was completed in 1755.
But Skúli did not only make his mark on Viðey. He also founded the first industrial enterprise in Iceland, the Innréttingar woollen workshops, which led to the beginning of urban development in Reykjavík. Hence he is known as the Father of Reykjavík.
In 1794 Ólafur Stephensen, the first Icelander to be Governor of Iceland, moved to Viðey, where he lived until his death in 1812.
In 1901 Eggert Briem and his wife Katrín Pétursdóttur started large-scale farming on Viðey. They built a cattleshed housing 48 cows, and sold about 200,000 litres of milk per year to the inhabitants of Reykjavík.
In 1907 Pétur J. Thorsteinsson and Thor Jensen founded the P. J. Thorsteinsson & Co. fishing company, with share capital of a million krónur, a huge amount at the time. Hence it was always known as Milljónafélagið (the Million Corporation). It was located at the eastern end of the island, where a village of houses and fish processing facilities developed, adjacent to the best harbour facilities on Faxaflói Bay. At that time Reykjavík had no proper harbour.
The Million Corp. went out of business in 1914, but fish processing continued. In 1924 the Kári company made the island its fis-hing headquart-ers, and the population of the village rose to a high point of 138 in 1930. A year later the fishing company failed, after which the islanders began to move away. By 1943 the village was uninhabited.
Farming continued on Viðey until the 1950s, after which the island was uninhabited.
By 1968, when Viðey House and the church passed to the National Museum of Iceland, the buildings were severely dilapidated. In 1986 the Icelandic state presented the buildings to the City of Reykjavík. Renovation work on the buildings was completed in 1988.