g ; •:
the water from it is conveyed to the
bath through a conduit made o f ftones.
At the end of this conduit is a hole in
a rock, which is fliut with a fpigot and
faucet, through which you let in as
much warm water as you think fit ;
this, when too hot, may be eafily
cooled by the water from an adjoining
brook.
Thefe are almoft the only antient
monuments Iceland affords, and what,
qs you will readily allow, are of very
little importance. There are no aii"
tient manufcripts, Icelandic fagas, or
hiftoricai traditions or accounts to be
met with, the iiland having been entirely
ftripped o f them, owing to the
zeal and induilry o f the antiquarians
and others, who formerly reforted in
numbers to this country for the foie
end of collefting them.
The honour o f having firft begun to
colled: them belongs to Sweden : the
firft who undertook it was Jonas Rug-
man, who went to Iceland in i6 6 r , at
the expence of the court o f Sweden,
where he obtained a number o f manufcripts,
which laid the foundation for
2 the
the colledion o f Icelandic original records,
that are contained in the Swedifli
archives of antiquities. Encouraged
by his example, Thormodr Thorfve-
fon likewife went to Iceland, furniihed
with an order from king Frederic the
Third, o f the 27th o f May 1662, to
the bifliops Bryniolf, SveniTon, and
Giile Thorlakfon, to aflift him in col-
leding Icelandic manufcripts.
After the eftabliihment o f the college
of antiquities it was propofed to
fend Peter Salan to Iceland; but this
did not take place, though they gained
their point fome time after, in 1680,
by means o f Gudmundr Olfon, who
prevailed upon his brother Helge Olfon
to leave Iceland and come to Sweden,
whither he brought a confiderable
number o f manufcripts. Great additions
were afterwards made to thefe
colle6Ilons by Arngrim Jonfen, Jonas
Wigfulen, Lopt Jofephen, Gudmund
Gudmunderfon, and Thorvaldr Brock-
nian, and who were all employed as
tranilators by the college of antiquities.
Jonas Eghardfen, Magnus BenediHfen,
lileif Thorleifsen, Ejnar Ejnarfen,
Arnas Hakanfen, FrancisJacobfen, and
Thord
K 'il? Id '2»