Thingeyrakirkja

Thingeyrar was the site of the first monastery founded in Iceland, established in 1133, and it became a centre of manuscript writing - several of the sagas and historical works of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries were composed or copied there. The monastery is gone. What stands is a church of 1877, built by the farmer Asgeir Einarsson from stone quarried on the far side of the Hop lagoon and hauled across on the ice in winter. The ceiling inside is painted blue with gold stars, and the fittings include an alabaster altarpiece of the fifteenth century made in England and a set of carved figures of similar age.

What you actually see

• Iceland's first monastery site - founded 1133, a centre of manuscript work.
• A stone church of 1877 - built from rock dragged over the frozen lagoon.
• A blue ceiling with gold stars - the interior's best-known feature.
• A fifteenth century English altarpiece - alabaster, with carved figures.

When to go

June to August for the interior; the exterior any time. An hour.

Honest expectations

The interior is open only in summer and by arranged visits otherwise. Nothing of the monastery survives above ground. The road in is quiet and partly gravel. Facilities are minimal.

Nearby

Blonduos is on route 1; Vatnsnes and Hvitserkur are west.