The Flatey Book, (in Icelandic the Flateyjarbók 'Flat-island book') is one of the most important medieval Icelandic manuscripts. It is also known as GkS 1005 fol. and Codex Flatöiensis. Sometimes Anglicized as Flateyjarbok.

Description

The Flatey Book is the largest and certainly one of the most beautiful of medieval Icelandic manuscripts, comprising 235 velum leaves, carefully written and illustrated. It contains mostly sagas of the Norse kings as found in the Heimskringla, specifically the sagas about Olaf Tryggvason's, St. Olaf, Sverre, Hakon the Old, Magnus the Good, and Harald Hardrada. But they appear here expanded with additional material not found elsewhere (some material being very old) and with other unique differences. Most, but not all, of the additional material is placed within the royal sagas, sometimes interlaced. Also in the manuscript is the only copy of the eddic poem Hyndluljód, a unique set of annals from creation to 1394, and many short tales not otherwise preserved such as Nornagests þáttr ('Tale of Norna Gest').

Especially important is the Grœnlendinga þáttr ('Tale of the Greenlanders') giving the only full account of the Vinland colony. Related to this is a short tale of Eirík the Red with some differences from the Eiriks saga rauð ('Saga of Eirík the Red'). Here also is preserved the only Icelandic version of the Orkneyinga saga ('Saga of the Orkney Islanders') and Færeyinga saga ('Saga of the Faroe Islanders').

History

From internal evidence the book was being written in 1387 and was completed in 1394 or very soon after. The first page states that its owner is "Jonn Hakonar son" and that the book was scribed by two priests. One of them, "Jon prestr Þordar son", inscribed the contents from the tale of Eirík the Traveller down to the end of the two Olaf sags and the other, "Magnus prestr Thorhallz sun", inscribed the earlier and later material and also drew the illustrations.

Further material was inserted towards the end of the 15th century.

The manuscript first received special attention by the learned in 1651 when Bishop Brynjulf Sveinsson of Skalholt, with permission of King Frederick III of Denmark requested that all folk of Iceland who owned old manuscripts to turn them over to the Danish king, either providing the original or a copy, either as a gift or for a price. Jon Torfason, son of Rev. Torfi Finsson, who resided on Flatey ('Flat Island') in Breidafjörd on the west coast of Iceland, was then the owner of book which was already known as the Flateyjarbók. At first Jon refused to release his precious heirloom, the biggest and best book in all of Iceland, and Jon continued to refuse even when Bishop Brynjulf paid him a personal visit and offered him five hundreds of land. But Jon only changed his mind and bestowed it on the Bishop just as the Bishop was leaving the region and in return Jon was exempted from all future ecclesiastical taxes.

The manuscript was given into the keeping of Thormod Torfæus, in 1662, as a present from Bishop Brynjulf to King Frederick III and placed in the Royal Museum of Copenhagen. (The rest of Bishop Brynjulf's collection was dispersed by his heirs who had no interest in a collection of old mansucripts and most disappeared for ever, though fortunately transcipts to paper had been made from many of them.) In 1971 the Flatey Book and the Codex Regius were repatriated to Iceland as Icelandic national treasures.

Bibliography and External links

• Flateyjarbok: En samling af Norske Konge-saegar, 3 Vols. Ed. Guðbrandur Vigfússon and Unger, C. R. (1860–1868). Christiania [Oslo]: P. T. Mallings forlagsboghandel. Sagnanet: Flateyjarbók (http://saga.library.cornell.edu/saganet/?MIval=/ManuscriptSagasB&language=english&STitle=Flateyjarb%F3k) (Graphic images of front matter and pp. 1–15.)
• Sagnanet: Table of contents for: GKS 1005 fol (http://saga.library.cornell.edu/saganet/?MIval=/ViewManuscriptB&Manuscript=507&language=english)
• Det Humanistiske Fakultet: GkS 1005 fol. — "Flateyjarbók" (http://www.hum.ku.dk/ami/flb.html) (Some information and an image.)
• The Flatey Book and recently discovered Vatican manuscripts concerning America as early as the tenth century. Ed. and trans. by Anderson, Rasmus B. (1906). London: The Norroena Society. (Facsimiles of Icelandic text, Icelandic transcription, Danish translation, English translation of Vinland material and related material only.)
• Text and English translation by Loptsson of Eireks þáttr rauða ('Tale of Eirík the Red') and Grœnlendinga þáttir ('Tale of the Greenlanders') from the Flatey Book (http://www.northvegr.org/lore/flatey/001.php)

sv:Flatöboken