Fell: Life Under the Mountain
In 1868 the prosperous farmstead at Fell in southeast Iceland was destroyed by a powerful glacial outburst flood, bringing into sudden focus the turbulent relationship between the glacier Breiðamerkurjökull and the communities farming in its shadow.
On the broad outwash plain of Breiðamerkursandur, beneath the mountain Fell, once stood a prosperous farmstead of the same name. For centuries, families here lived alongside the glacier Breiðamerkurjökull, their everyday lives shaped by changing weather, shifting rivers and advancing ice. Today only low ruins remain, but the story of Fell shows how closely Iceland’s natural and cultural heritage are bound together.
In the late 1600s Fell was already an important farm and the home of the county sheriff, Ísleifur Einarsson. At that time the sandur is believed to have been more vegetated and fertile, and the glacier lay farther back, a distant presence rather than a daily threat. From around 1700 a cooling climate led the glacier to advance. The people of Breiðamerkursandur adapted as best they could: moving livestock, rebuilding, and learning to live with a landscape that was constantly changing.
On the broad outwash plain of Breiðamerkursandur, beneath the mountain Fell, once stood a prosperous farmstead of the same name. For centuries, families here lived alongside the glacier Breiðamerkurjökull, their everyday lives shaped by changing weather, shifting rivers and advancing ice. Today only low ruins remain, but the story of Fell shows how closely Iceland’s natural and cultural heritage are bound together.
In the late 1600s Fell was already an important farm and the home of the county sheriff, Ísleifur Einarsson. At that time the sandur is believed to have been more vegetated and fertile, and the glacier lay farther back, a distant presence rather than a daily threat. From around 1700 a cooling climate led the glacier to advance. The people of Breiðamerkursandur adapted as best they could: moving livestock, rebuilding, and learning to live with a landscape that was constantly changing.
Þorbjörg Arnórsdóttir
The film grew out of archaeological and historical research led by the Hornafjörður Research Centre, University of Iceland. Detailed reconstruction drawings of Fell as it may have appeared in the 1800s were developed from surveys of the ruins, historic photographs and architectural studies of similar turf farms in Öræfi, visits to Núpsstaður farm and church, and close collaboration with regional specialists. These images show the likely layout of the buildings, Fell’s relationship to the glacier and sandur, and the interior of a typical dwelling with a cow byre below and living space above. These reconstruction drawings then formed the basis for a 3D digital model of the farm used for the film’s animated sequences.
The story of Fell is one of resilience and change: how people once made a living at the edge of a glacier, and how that same glacier gradually transformed their world. As you watch the film and explore Vatnajökull National Park, Fell invites you to reflect on the balance between human settlement and a powerful, ever‑shifting landscape – and on how both natural and cultural heritage shape the character of this remarkable region.