About

Glaumbær is a historic turf farm and museum located in Skagafjörður, North Iceland, approximately 10 km from the village of Varmahlíð. The site has been continuously inhabited since the 11th century, though the current buildings date primarily from the 18th and 19th centuries. The farmstead consists of 13 interconnected turf buildings arranged in a traditional baðstofa (communal living room) layout. The thick turf walls and grass roofs provide excellent insulation, keeping the interior warm in winter and cool in summer. The buildings are constructed using timber frames, stone foundations, and packed turf blocks. The interior rooms include sleeping quarters, a kitchen, storage areas, a dairy, and a guest room. Each is furnished with period-appropriate furniture, tools, and household items. Guides dressed in period clothing demonstrate traditional crafts and explain daily life on an Icelandic turf farm. The last residents left Glaumbær in 1947, and it opened as a museum in 1952, managed by the National Museum of Iceland. Two additional timber houses on site now serve as a café and gift shop. Glaumbær is one of Iceland's most important cultural heritage sites and is open daily during summer months.

📖 Story

For centuries, most Icelanders lived in turf houses like those at Glaumbær. These thick-walled buildings, half-buried in the earth with grass growing over their roofs, provided shelter from Iceland's harsh climate using the most readily available materials: turf, stone, and driftwood. Walking through Glaumbær is like stepping back 200 years — low ceilings force you to stoop, narrow passages wind between rooms, and the air inside is cool and earthy. The farm was inhabited until 1947, then preserved as a museum. It is one of the finest examples of traditional Icelandic architecture still standing.

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