Skálholt Cathedral

One of the two ancient episcopal seats of the country, established in the eleventh century and for seven hundred years the leading centre of religion, learning and political power on the island. The present concrete cathedral, consecrated in 1963, stands on the historic mound where earlier wooden churches rose and burned. A stone sarcophagus of a medieval bishop was uncovered during construction and is displayed in the crypt. Set amid farmland in the south, the site includes a school, a reconstructed turf building and a summer concert season.