Landvættir ("land
wights") are mythical creatures in old Icelandic literature and stories. They were supposed to protect the country. The biggest of them dwelled in four places in Iceland: a dragon in
Vopnafjörður, the bird in
Eyjafjörður, the bull in
Breiðafjörður and the giant in the south.
Landnámabók tells of a time when King
Haraldr Gormsson, King of the Danes, intending to invade
Iceland, orders a wizard to travel to Iceland and tell him of what he sees there. The wizard goes in the form of a
whale, and goes west of the north of Iceland. There he sees that all mountains and hills are full of landvættir, some big, and others small. When he comes to
Vopnafjörður he tries to walk on land, but is thwarted by a great
dragon who is followed by many worms, bugs and lizards who breath poison on him. So the wizard tries to go to the west, to
Eyjafjörður. There he is met by a
bird, with wings so long that they touch the mountains to each side of the
fjord, along with many other birds. The Wizard continues west and south to
Breiðafjörður and heads to land where he meets a giant
Bull who wades into the sea and bellows at him mightily, followed by many landvættir. The wizard goes south around
Reykjanes and tries to swim ashore on Vikarskeiði. There he met with a stone giant armed with a staff of iron, taller than the mountains and with many
jötnar following him. Next the wizard tries to go to the east. There he sees nothing but sands and wastelands with tall waves crashing its shores, where
longships cannot land.
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