Eldhátíð (Fire Festival) was a festival of experimental archaeology, using science to explore the Viking-age battle tactic of burning down a longhouse.

A go-to battle tactic in the Viking age was to burn down an opponent’s house. The tactic is mentioned numerous times in literary sources and in law codes from the Viking age. Hurstwic and Eiríksstaðir, in association with the National Museum of Iceland, and the Icelandic Forestry Service tested the tactic using experimental archaeology, in a public festival held at Eiríksstaðir.

The festival took place at the replica Viking-age turfhouse at Eiríksstaðir in Haukadalur in the west of Iceland.

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