How Turf Is Used In Icelandic Architecture

Turf in Icelandic Architecture 1

HOW TURF IS USED IN ICELANDIC ARCHITECTURE

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Turf in Icelandic Architecture 2

HOW TURF IS USED IN ICELANDIC ARCHITECTURE

A1. Outline and Overview

The history of the usage of turf as a building material in Iceland traces its roots to the 9

century when Norse Vikings and his colonization team first arrived at the location. This resulted

in the settling of approximately 60, 000 foreigners who occupied large tracts of land in Iceland.

By the 1930s, most of the settlements were evenly distributed over the plains and in the coastal

cities. In the plains, farming was the most prevalent economic activity and most of the farm

houses were constructed using turf (Van-Hoof & Van-Dijken, 2008, 1024). Characteristically,

residential buildings, stores, barns for storing hay, and smithies had turf walls and sod roofs.

Historically, up until today, turf has formed a basic material for the construction of

houses and other structures in Icelandic architecture. It is mineral-based and occurs naturally in

the soils of Iceland. Generally, marshland and grassland turfs get used in the construction of

houses. The process of obtaining turf involves the chopping of the upper layer of wet Icelandic

marshlands (Bain, 2005, 13). Typically, the soils that make up marshland turf are made up of silt

and decomposed sedge roots which densely combine together and exist under the cover of grass

and sledge. On the other hand, grassland turf, which also gets referred to as sods occur in drier

and earthier in nature. Because of its vulnerability to shrinkage, it gets cut in larger layers as

opposed to the marshland turf. The presence of bog iron in the marshy soils gives the turfs

rubiginous colouring when used in construction of buildings. On average, the depth of turfs

range from 10 cm to 20 cm, while their thicknesses vary depending on available pastureland.

The building methodology traditionally involved farm-hands construction of farm houses

using turf, timber, and other materials. The timber forms the frames that support the roofs that

are made of sods. The exterior walls of the houses may contain turf, stones, or a combination of

Turf in Icelandic Architecture 3

the two in mixtures similar to cavity walls. These can be achieved through single coursing of turf

or stone or composite courses of varieties of these materials (Scribol Architecture, 2012, 1).

The history of turf and its usage in architecture maintains a lot of relevance and

importance to the course of architecture. Notably, it is marked as a sourcing root of an old

architectural heritage from which modern architecture can borrow information related to

structure construction and maintenance. An example of this is the case of the old farmstead

preserved for learning and posterity purposes at Austur-Meðalholt of Flói parish in the south of

Iceland.

A Distant View of the Old Farmstead

Retrieved from Turf House (2016)

A side View of a Turf House from the Old Farmstead

Retrieved from Turf House (2016)

Turf in Icelandic Architecture 4

For modern architecture, turf house technology can lead to the cultivation of practical

skills that have been employed in maintaining the houses in the past. If these houses evolve into

modernized structures, such technology would remain useful both for them and for maintaining

other modern houses. Further, the use of natural materials that seamlessly merge into architecture

as though they are an extension of nature in structures could also be quite useful in the

advancement of environment friendly and sustainable future architecture.

The use of turf in Icelandic architecture serves significant architectural, historical, and

cultural purposes. While, many buildings have been preserved for tourism and cultural heritage,

the technology continues to be applied in today’s architecture in Iceland. This paper aims at

analyzing the material of turf, its usage in architecture, methodology of architectural

construction, and the significance of turf to architectural technology and culture in Iceland.

A2. Structure Plan

The structure of the paper will contain five chapters which will cover an introduction, the

presentation of a historical background on turf, a description of data collection methods,

technological appropriateness of turf, and the current and future applications of turf as follows.

Chapter One:

This introductory chapter sets out the outline of the usage of turf in Iceland and its

architectural application. Perhaps, the topic remains one of the most interesting since turf served

as a material of building and increasing thermal insulation in buildings centuries ago yet

continues to be used. The research uses qualitative data collection techniques to ascertain the

materials, methodology, and procedures in the application of turf in Icelandic architecture.

Chapter Two

Turf in Icelandic Architecture 5

This chapter analyzes the history and origins of turf in relation to its application in

Icelandic architecture. Recorded history on turf goes back as far as the 9

century with the

arrival of the Vikings in Iceland. Another issue of concern in the chapter is the usage of turf in

other cultures and the analysis of relationships between Icelandic usage of turf and other

cultures.

Chapter Three

This chapter assesses the technological aspects of turf as an architectural material as well

as its suitability and appropriateness in architecture. While many Icelandic farmers have already

abandoned the use of architecture, some still find it suitable and continue to use it. Various

elements that make the use of turf in architecture successful also get analyzed in this section.

Chapter Four

Although architectural application of turf is relatively old and would be deemed outdated,

many architects still use it in modern-day constructions. Turf is applied in various ways while

combined with concrete, to put waterproofing capabilities in place, and to increase insulation.

These and other modern applications as well as their influence on modern perceptions on turf get

analyzed in this chapter.

Chapter Five

Following current applications of turf; chapter five prospects into future research on

potential application of turf in architecture. This involves the transfer and combination of many

technologies to achieve better results in the future.

Chapter Six

This chapter concludes the paper by reviewing the information presented and

summarizing the main points to help draw conclusions on the topic.

Turf in Icelandic Architecture 6

A3. Annotated Bibliography

Bain, S. (2005). Construction and Maintenance of Turf Roofs in the North Atlantic

Region.Churchill Fellow. Available at:

http://www.wcmt.org.uk/sites/default/files/migrated-reports/95_1.pdf

This source links the use of turf in architecture in St Kilda, Færoe Islands, Iceland and

Norway with the aim to establish intricate links determining similarities and differences in

architectural technology. This source will be relevant in helping establish the multicultural use of

turf. It will also help in determining how the differences and similarities can be merged.

Baring-Gould, S., & Newton, A. (2007). Iceland: its scenes and sagas. London: Smith, Elder and

Son.

This book that covers Iceland and reviews the scenery and landscape also reviews the

Icelandic use of turf. It is relevant for tying down Icelandic turf architecture to the environment

in which it is used.

Bille, M., & Sørensen, T. F. (2016). Elements of architecture: assembling archaeology,

atmosphere and the performance of building spaces. London: Taylor & Francis Group.

The striking element of this book is the engagement of the archeological aspect of

architecture with which it digs into the history of architecture to trace the origins of the use of

turf. Icelandic and other turf get captured under the consideration of anthropology, architecture,

cultural geography and philosophy.

Council of Europe. (1992). The Protection of the architectural heritage against natural

disasters: proceedings of the European Colloquy on Regulatory Measures concerning the

Protection of the Architectural Heritage against natural Disasters in Europe (Ravello,

Italy, 15 TRUNCATED.

Turf in Icelandic Architecture 7

With focus on the Icelandic turf and its architectural and cultural relevance, this book

focuses on the preservation of turf for tourism and heritage purposes. It reviews the methods

through which the heritage can be protected.

Hourihane, C. (2012). The Grove encyclopedia of medieval art and architecture. New York,

Oxford University Press.

Although this source is not directly on Icelandic turf, it is one of the most relevant

because it covers Medieval Art and Architecture as old as the 6

century and within this

coverage lies the topic of interest, Icelandic turf architecture.

Mímisson, K. (2015). Building Identities: The Architecture of the Persona. International Journal

of Historical Archaeology, 20(1), pp.207-227. Available at:

http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10761-015-0322-5 [Accessed 4 Oct. 2016].

This source has focus on the history of building identities, which incorporates the farm

houses built with Icelandic turf. By focusing on transferable identities in architecture, the author

seeks to establish interpretive possibilities of applying inherited identities like those of turf to

modern architecture.

Scribol Architecture, (2012). Iceland's Historic Turf Houses: The Eco-Homes of the Future?

[Online] Scribol.com. Available at: http://scribol.com/art-and-design/architecture-art-

and-design/icelands-historic-turf-houses-the-eco-homes-of-the-future/ [Accessed 4 Oct.

2016].

This source proves to be among the most relevant in relation to the future application of

the technology of turf in architecture. The source analyzes turf as a material, different turf

houses, and the potential of turf being used as a eco-friendly architectural option in the future.

Turf in Icelandic Architecture 8

Van Hoof, J. and Van Dijken, F. (2008). The historical turf farms of Iceland: Architecture,

building technology and the indoor environment. Building and Environment, 43(6),

pp.1023-1030.

This source is relevant to the paper because it analyzes the history of the usage of turf in

Iceland. In its analysis, it encompasses materials of construction, techniques, and the general

effect of turf in Icelandic architecture. It also assesses the different types of turfs and their

different uses.

Turf House. (2016). Old farmstead | TURF HOUSE. Islenskibaerinn.is. Retrieved 9 October

2016, from http://islenskibaerinn.is/english/old-farmstead/

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How Turf is used in Icelandic Architecture

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