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Eiríkur's Glacier from Sheepfold Tarn. |
Sheepfold Tarn |
Efst á Arnarvatnshćđum |
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Up on Eagle Lake Highlands, Beneath the brow of North Ridge I've seen no place more peaceful, |
Efst á Arnarvatnshćđum Og undir Norđurásnum Á öngum stađ eg uni |
| Date: | 1844-5. |
| Form: | Three stanzas, each containing four three-stress lines with the rhyme scheme AbCb and the alliteration pattern 22. |
| Manuscript: | KG 31 b I, the earlier copy (facsimile KJH282; image 214K) and KG 31 a II, the later copy (facsimile KJH281; image 192K), in neither of which the poem bears a title. |
| First published: | 1847 (A240-1; image 227K) under the title "Réttarvatn" ("Sheepfold Tarn"). |
Commentary: Eagle Lake Highlands (Arnarvatnshćđir) are a lonely solitude in west central Iceland. The dome of Eiríks Glacier (Eiríksjökull) dominates the horizon some 18 kilometers to the south. Sheepfold Tarn (Réttarvatn) is one of many small bodies of water dotting the area. The old horse track between Skagafjörđur and Borgarfjörđur, which Jónas travelled many times, crosses this wilderness of lakes, skirting the north edge of Sheepfold Tarn. North Ridge (Norđurás) is a hill north of the tarn; at its foot lies Angelica Field (Hvannamór). The area was a favorite place to camp overnight and break a journey across the highlands (see SkSs91).
On 20 September 1841, during his last journey along this route, returning south to Reykjavík after attending Bjarni Thorarensen's funeral, Jónas camped at Sheepfold Tarn to study the geology of the immediate area (2E389) and made the sketch reproduced above. The poem may preserve memories of this visit.
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