Driftwood on Iceland

Driftwood on Iceland:

There has always been a lot of driftwood that came to Iceland. Via the main rivers of Siberia it floated into the sea and was taken through the current. Captured in the ice, it drifted until it reached the coasts of Iceland. Not just Siberian driftwood, even though this is the main part, also driftwood from South America reaches the coasts of Iceland.

This driftwood is, because of its very long journey through the seas, filled with salt. Therefore it is really well preserved and suitable for the use of building houses. The wood is so strong that you still can find it in the oldest buildings on Iceland.

In this almost tree less country, the driftwood was an outcome for the people in the old days. Because of the driftwood, many people, especially in the north western part of Iceland, were able to survive the harsh winters. The driftwood was not only used for building ships and houses but also for furniture, fences, fire and charcoal.

The oldest known driftwood was (after counting the year rings) five hundred years old. It has been told that some pieces of driftwood can be drifting from five up to forty years before it reaches Icelandic coasts because it is stuck in the ice for many years.

In the old days it also provided the Inquisition with wood for the witch burns. From the years 1580 to 1685 at least twenty people were burnt in the western part of Iceland for performing witchcraft. This amount is probably much higher but there are no known records.