Albína Hulda Pálsdóttir

• Barrett, James; Khamaiko, Natalia; Ferrari, Giada; Cuevas, Angelica; Kneale, Catherine & Hufthammer, Anne Karin [Show all 8 contributors for this article] (2022). Walruses on the Dnieper: new evidence for the intercontinental trade of Greenlandic ivory in the Middle Ages. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Biological Sciences. ISSN 0962-8452. 289(1972), p. 1–9. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2021.2773. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Mediaeval walrus hunting in Iceland and Greenland—driven by Western European demand for ivory and walrus hide ropes—has been identified as an important pre-modern example of ecological globalization. By contrast, the main origin of walrus ivory destined for eastern European markets, and then onward trade to Asia, is assumed to have been Arctic Russia. Here, we investigate the geographical origin of nine twelfth-century CE walrus specimens discovered in Kyiv, Ukraine—combining archaeological typology (based on chaîne opératoire assessment), ancient DNA (aDNA) and stable isotope analysis. We show that five of seven specimens tested using aDNA can be genetically assigned to a western Greenland origin. Moreover, six of the Kyiv rostra had been sculpted in a way typical of Greenlandic imports to Western Europe, and seven are tentatively consistent with a Greenland origin based on stable isotope analysis. Our results suggest that demand for the products of Norse Greenland's walrus hunt stretched not only to Western Europe but included Ukraine and, by implication given linked trade routes, also Russia, Byzantium and Asia. These observations illuminate the surprising scale of mediaeval ecological globalization and help explain the pressure this process exerted on distant wildlife populations and those who harvested them.

• Smith, Kevin P.; Ólafsson, Guðmundur & Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2021). Ritual responses to catastrophic volcanism in Viking Age Iceland: Reconsidering Surtshellir Cave through Bayesian analyses of AMS dates, tephrochronology, and texts. Journal of Archaeological Science. ISSN 0305-4403. 126, p. 1–20. doi: 10.1016/j.jas.2020.105316. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Surtshellir, a 1600-m-long lava cave in the interior of Iceland, contains a unique Viking Age archaeological site located nearly 300 m from its entrance and more than 10 m below the surface of the Hallmundarhraun lava field. Since the 1750s, the site has been interpreted as an outlaw shelter, yet in the 12th-13th centuries it was associated with actions directed towards an elemental being – Surtr – for whom the site was named and who, according to medieval Icelandic accounts of Viking Age mythology, was present at the world's creation and would destroy it after the battle of Ragnarök. Archaeological fieldwork inside Surtshellir in 2001, 2012, and 2013 produced 20 new AMS dates that, combined with three earlier radiocarbon and tephrochronological dates, provide the basis for Bayesian analyses which suggest (1) that the cave formed in the first major volcanic eruption directly witnessed by northern Europeans since the Late Pleistocene; (2) that this took place shortly after the Norse colonization of Iceland began; (3) that people entered the cave soon afterwards; (4) that for 80–120 years they deposited the fragmented bones of slaughtered domestic animals in piles stretching 120 m through the cave's “dark zone”, burning others at high temperatures in a dry-stone structure built deep inside a raised side passage; and (5) that these activities ended shortly after Iceland's conversion to Christianity. Surtshellir provides important new insights into Viking Age ritual practice, Iceland's settlement and conversion, and the cultural responses of Iceland's newly arrived settlers to the existential challenges posed by previously unimagined catastrophic volcanism.

• Smith, Kevin P.; Ólafsson, Guðmundur; Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Sigurðsson, Magnús A. (2021). Hallmundarhellir – víggirtur hellir frá Sturlungaöld. Árbók hins Íslenzka fornleifafélags. ISSN 0256-8462. 110, p. 117–160. Full text in Research Archive
• Ferrari, Giada; Cuevas, Angelica; Wyrozemska, Agata Teresa; Ballantyne, Rachel; Kersten, Oliver & Palsdottir, Albina Hulda [Show all 18 contributors for this article] (2021). The preservation of ancient DNA in archaeological fish bone. Journal of Archaeological Science. ISSN 0305-4403. 126(105317). doi: 10.1016/j.jas.2020.105317. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The field of ancient DNA is dominated by studies focusing on terrestrial vertebrates. This taxonomic bias limits our understanding of endogenous DNA preservation for species with different bone physiology, such as teleost fish. Teleost bone is typically brittle, porous, lightweight, and is characterized by a lack of bone remodeling during growth. All of these factors potentially affect DNA preservation. Using high-throughput shotgun sequencing, we here investigate the preservation of DNA in a range of different bone elements from over 200 archaeological Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua) specimens from 38 sites in northern Europe, dating up to 8000 years before present. We observe that the majority of archaeological sites (79%) yield endogenous DNA, with 40% of sites providing samples containing high levels (>20%). Library preparation success and levels of endogenous DNA depend mainly on excavation site and pre-extraction laboratory treatment. The use of pre-extraction treatments lowers the rate of libraries that can be sequenced, although — if successful — the fraction of endogenous DNA can be improved by several orders of magnitude. This trade-off between library preparation success and levels of endogenous DNA allows for alternative extraction strategies depending on the requirements of down-stream analyses and research questions. Finally, we do not find particular bone elements to yield higher levels of endogenous DNA, as is the case for denser bones in mammals. Our results highlight the potential of archaeological fish bone as a source for ancient DNA and suggest a possible role of bone remodeling in the preservation of endogenous DNA.

• Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Star, Bastiaan; Leifsson, Rúnar; Gondek, Agata Teresa & Orlando, Ludovic [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Sexing Viking Age horses from burial and non-burial sites in Iceland using ancient DNA. Journal of Archaeological Science. ISSN 0305-4403. 101, p. 115–122. doi: 10.1016/j.jas.2018.11.007. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Horses are the most common grave goods found in Icelandic Viking Age graves. Horse skeletons have previously been sexed based on pelvis shape and the presence of canine teeth in male horses over 4–5 years of age. Morphological data has shown that all horses from Icelandic burials that were amenable to sexing were male. Yet the use of morphological methods to determine sex is problematic since they rely on finding a well-preserved pelvis and/or robust canine teeth. Furthermore, quantitative data underlying the features of the horse pelvis used for sexing is lacking and canine teeth have been reported to occur in mares. In this study we build upon and extend recently developed methodologies to make use of shotgun sequencing of ancient DNA (aDNA) for molecular sexing of Viking Age horse remains. With minimal sequencing effort we identified the sex of the largest collection (n = 22) of Viking Age Icelandic horses studied to date, sourced from both burial (n = 19) and non-burial (n = 3) sites. Our results revealed a male to female sex bias ratio of 18:1 in burial sites, versus 0:3 in non-burial sites. These findings support the significant over-representation of male horses in Viking Age graves in Iceland, yet show that –albeit rare– mares could also be selected for ritual burial in Viking Age Iceland. This cost-effective method provides statistical confidence to allow for sexing of highly fragmented archaeological specimens with low endogenous DNA content.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Bläuer, Auli; Rannamäe, Eve; Boessenkool, Sanne & Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn (2019). Not a limitless resource: ethics and guidelines for destructive sampling of archaeofaunal remains. Royal Society Open Science. 6(10), p. 1–11. doi: 10.1098/rsos.191059. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  With the advent of ancient DNA, as well as other methods such as isotope analysis, destructive sampling of archaeofaunal remains has increased much faster than the effort to collect and curate them. While there has been considerable discussion regarding the ethics of destructive sampling and analysis of human remains, this dialogue has not extended to archaeofaunal material. Here we address this gap and discuss the ethical challenges surrounding destructive sampling of materials from archaeofaunal collections. We suggest ways of mitigating the negative aspects of destructive sampling and present step-by-step guidelines aimed at relevant stakeholders, including scientists, holding institutions and scientific journals. Our suggestions are in most cases easily implemented without significant increases in project costs, but with clear long-term benefits in the preservation and use of zooarchaeological material.

• Lucas, Gavin; Ólafsson, Guðmundur; Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Skarphéðinsson, Indriði (2019). From fisherman’s cottage to summerhouse towards an archaeology of poverty and affluence in early twentieth century Iceland. Arcaeologia Islandica. ISSN 1560-8026. 13, p. 95–132. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This paper discusses the archaeology of a small cottage in Seltjarnarnes, near Reykjavík. It was built at the beginning of the twentieth century, home to a fisherman and his family but later used as a summerhouse. Using written and oral sources alongside the material remains, a history of the property is narrated and an attempt is made to contextualize the findings within the wider issues of poverty and affluence during a period of major social and economic transition in Iceland.

• Fages, Antoine; Hanghøj, Kristian; Khan, Naveed; Gaunitz, Charleen; Seguin-Orlando, Andaine & Leonardi, Michela [Show all 121 contributors for this article] (2019). Tracking Five Millennia of Horse Management with Extensive Ancient Genome Time Series. Cell. ISSN 0092-8674. 177(6), p. 1419–1435. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2019.03.049. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Horse domestication revolutionized warfare and accelerated travel, trade, and the geographic expansion of languages. Here, we present the largest DNA time series for a non-human organism to date, including genome-scale data from 149 ancient animals and 129 ancient genomes (≥1-fold coverage), 87 of which are new. This extensive dataset allows us to assess the modern legacy of past equestrian civilizations. We find that two extinct horse lineages existed during early domestication, one at the far western (Iberia) and the other at the far eastern range (Siberia) of Eurasia. None of these contributed significantly to modern diversity. We show that the influence of Persian-related horse lineages increased following the Islamic conquests in Europe and Asia. Multiple alleles associated with elite-racing, including at the MSTN "speed gene," only rose in popularity within the last millennium. Finally, the development of modern breeding impacted genetic diversity more dramatically than the previous millennia of human management.</p>

• Ameen, Carly; Feuerborn, Tatiana R.; Brown, Sarah K.; Linderholm, Anna; Hulme-Beaman, Ardern & Lebrasseur, Ophélie [Show all 59 contributors for this article] (2019). Specialized sledge dogs accompanied Inuit dispersal across the North American Arctic. Proceedings of the Royal Society of London. Biological Sciences. ISSN 0962-8452. 286:20291929(1929), p. 1–10. doi: 10.1098/rspb.2019.1929. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Domestic dogs have been central to life in the North American Arctic for millennia. The ancestors of the Inuit were the first to introduce the widespread usage of dog sledge transportation technology to the Americas, but whether the Inuit adopted local Palaeo-Inuit dogs or introduced a new dog population to the region remains unknown. To test these hypotheses, we generated mitochondrial DNA and geometric morphometric data of skull and dental elements from a total of 922 North American Arctic dogs and wolves spanning over 4500 years. Our analyses revealed that dogs from Inuit sites dating from 2000 BP possess morphological and genetic signatures that distinguish them from earlier Palaeo-Inuit dogs, and identified a novel mitochondrial clade in eastern Siberia and Alaska. The genetic legacy of these Inuit dogs survives today in modern Arctic sledge dogs despite phenotypic differences between archaeological and modern Arctic dogs. Together, our data reveal that Inuit dogs derive from a secondary pre-contact migration of dogs distinct from Palaeo-Inuit dogs, and probably aided the Inuit expansion across the North American Arctic beginning around 1000 BP.

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• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2022). Víkingar seldu grænlenskar rostungstennur til Kænugarðs. [TV]. Stöð 2 fréttir. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2022). Rostungsbein sem enduðu í Kænugarði fyrir þúsund árum fóru líklega um Ísland. [Internet]. visir.is. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2021). Ancient DNA on Viking sheep from the North Atlantic and Ethical Approaches to Destructive Sampling of Animal Bones. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Kersten, Oliver; Star, Bastiaan; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Kantanen, Juha & Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2021). Genetic history of sheep in the North Atlantic from the Viking Age to modern breeds. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Sheep were vital to subsistence in the newly settled lands of the Norse in the Faroes, Iceland and Greenland during the Viking Age. Sheep are multi-product animals and were reared for wool, milk, meat, skins and horns, and large number of sheep bones have been found in archaeological excavations in the region. Despite their importance, the origins of local sheep breeds and their development since the 9th century are poorly understood. Here we obtained whole genome sequences of 27 ancient sheep from archaeological excavations in Iceland, Greenland, the Faroe Islands, Norway and the UK dating from 800-1700. For comparison we also analysed both newly generated and previously published modern genomes from North Atlantic, European and Asian sheep breeds. We trace the introduction of sheep to the Faroes, Iceland and Greenland in a clear stepping stone pattern, but ancient UK and Norwegian sheep form an overlapping cluster. Moreover, our data shows a large reduction in genomic diversity of sheep in the North Atlantic from the Viking and Medieval period to the modern sheep breeds in the region.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2021). Ancient DNA analysis of sheep from Norse Greenland. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Kersten, Oliver Sven; Star, Bastiaan; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Kantanen, Juha & Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2021). The tangled history of sheep in the North Atlantic revealed through ancient DNA. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Sheep played a vital role in the settlement of the North Atlantic in the Viking Age, providing wool for clothing and the sails of Viking ships in addition to milk, meat, skins and horns. Despite their importance we know little about how the rapid settlement of the North Atlantic shaped the population structure and genetic diversity of sheep and how the local breeds in the North Atlantic region have changed through a thousand years of isolation. We sequenced over 80 ancient sheep bones from archaeological excavations in the North Atlantic resulting in 28 ancient sheep genomes (800-1700 CE) with average coverage of 3,7X and eight genomes from modern landrace breeds present in the region. The population history of sheep in the North Atlantic is more complicated than previously thought with some evidence of admixture of sheep from Norway and the UK during the founding of the Icelandic sheep population. The sheep population in Norse Greenland is clearly founded from Iceland. In Greenland we observe a loss of heterozygosity and increases in inbreeding over time, probably related to population decline associated with the collapse of the Norse settlement in Greenland. Our data shows a large reduction in genomic diversity of sheep in the North Atlantic from the Viking and Medieval period to the modern sheep breeds in the region, specifically in Iceland and the Faroe Islands.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2021). Uppruni og erfðir íslensku sauðkindarinnar. [Radio]. RÚV - Rás 1. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Albína Hulda Pálsdóttir er dýrabeinafornleifafræðingur og hefur rannsakað uppruna og erfðir íslensku sauðkindarinnar. Hún fjallar um erfðarannsóknir á gömlum kindabeinum og hvað þær geta sagt okkur.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2020). The importance of recording petrous bones in archaeofaunal collections. ICAZ (International Council for Archaeozoology) Newsletter. 20(1), p. 31–32. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2020). “Han-heste fik skåret halsen over ved vikingernes grave [Male horses were killed at Viking burial sites]”. [Journal]. Tölt: Dansk Islandshesteforening. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2020). “Kønsforskel: Vikinger foretrak han-heste i graven [Sexing: Vikings preferred male horses for burial]”. [Internet]. Videnskab.dk. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). POWERFUL MALE VIKINGS WERE BURIED WITH THEIR POWERFUL MALE HORSES. [Internet]. Newsweek.com. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Leifsson, Rúnar; Orlando, Ludovic; Barrett, James H. & Star, Bastiaan [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Fornleifarannsóknir: Hryssur ekki valdar í kuml. [Journal]. Austurglugginn. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Star, Bastiaan; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Kantanen, Juha; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn & Boessenkool, Sanne (2019). Viking sheep of the North Atlantic: Origins & genetic heritage. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2019). Hvað er hægt að gera við 340 dýrabeinagrindur? Samanburðarsafn í dýrabeinafornleifafræði við Landbúnaðarháskóla Íslands. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Star, Bastiaan; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Kantanen, Juha; Stenseth, Nils Chr. & Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2019). The Sheep Saga: Archaeogenomics of Viking Age sheep in the North Atlantic. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn (2019). Merkilegar rannsóknir á uppruna og sögu tamda hestsins. [Internet]. Hestamennska. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Star, Bastiaan; Leifsson, Rúnar; Wyrozemska, Agata Teresa & Orlando, Ludovic [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Kyngreining á hrossum úr kumlum með forn-DNA Hestar lagðir í kuml á Íslandi á víkingaöld. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Lítið um hryssur í kumlum víkinga. [Journal]. Morgunblaðið. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Star, Bastiaan; Leifsson, Rúnar; Wyrozemska, Agata Teresa & Orlando, Ludovic [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Kyngreining á hrossum úr kumlum með fornDNA. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Hestar voru algengasta haugfé sem lagt var í kuml á Íslandi á víkingaöld. Beinagrindur hrossa er hægt að kyngreina á formi mjaðmagrindar og því hvort vígtennur eru til staðar. Vígtennur koma upp við 4-5 ára aldur í karldýrum en þó hafa rannsóknir sýnt að allt að þriðjungur hryssa getur haft vígtennur þó þær séu yfirleitt mun minni en í karldýrunum. Beinagreining hefur sýnt að öll hross sem hægt er að kyngreina úr íslenskum kumlum er úr karlkyns hestum en þar sem stór hluti þessara kumla fannst fyrir mörgum áratugum síðan við framkvæmdir eru beinagrindurnar oft of illa varðveittar til þess að hægt sé að kyngreina þær með vissu. Í þessari rannsókn notum við forn-DNA-greiningu til að kyngreina 22 hross frá víkingaöld. 19 hross voru úr kumlum en þrjú bein úr hellum og býlum voru einnig greind. Rannsóknir okkar leiddu í ljós að af 19 hrossum úr kumlum sem greind voru reyndist aðeins vera ein hryssa en öll sýnin sem komu úr helli og býli reyndust vera hryssur. Í greininni er einnig sýnt fram á að hægt er að kyngreina dýr jafnvel þó afar lítið sé varðveitt af DNA í hverju sýni og því má nota aðferðafræðina í greininni til að kyngreina fornleifafræðileg bein á mun stærri skala og fyrir minna fé en áður var talið. Fjallað verður um niðurstöður í nýútkominni grein Heidi M. Nistelberger, Albínu Huldu Pálsdóttur, Bastiaan Star, Rúnars Leifssonar, Agötu T. Gondek, Ludovic Orlando, James H. Barrett, Jóns Hallsteins Hallssonar og Sanne Boessenkool “Sexing Viking Age horses from burial and non-burial sites in Iceland using ancient DNA,” Journal of Archaeological Science 101 (2019), 115–122. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2018.11.007. Albína Hulda Pálsdóttir er dýrabeinafornleifafræðingur og starfar við Landbúnaðarháskóla Íslands. Hún er doktorsnemi við Óslóarháskóla en doktorsverkefni hennar heitir „Hestar og sauðfé víkinganna: Fornerfðafræði húsdýra í Norður-Atlantshafi“. Hún hefur greint dýrabeinasöfn frá Íslandi, Írlandi, Grænlandi og Færeyjum. Leiðbeinendur Albínu eru dr. Sanne Boessenkool við Óslóarháskóla, dr. Jón Hallsteinn Hallsson við Landbúnaðarháskóla Íslands og dr. Juha Kantanen hjá LUKE í Finnlandi. Verkefnið er styrkt af rannsóknasjóði Rannís á styrk nr. 162783051

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2019). Reindeer Cyclones Are Real, and You Definitely Don't Want to Get Caught in One. [Internet]. LiveScience website. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2019). Vatnsvik, Þingvallavatn from Iceland, The animal bones found in Vatnsvik, lake Þingvallavatn, Iceland. Open Context. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Ancient DNA from Viking Graves Proves the Fierce Fighters Rode Male Horses. [Internet]. https://www.livescience.com/64432-vikings-buried-with-stalli. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Leifsson, Rúnar (2019). Participant in the podcast ArchaeoAnimals, A Horse, Of Course - Ep 09. [Internet]. ArchaeoAnimals podcast. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Powerful Icelandic Vikings were buried with stallions. [Internet]. phys.org. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Lítið um hryss­ur í kuml­um vík­inga. [Internet]. mbl.is. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Boessenkool, Sanne; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Star, Bastiaan & Barrett, James H. [Show all 7 contributors for this article] (2019). Ancient Horse DNA From Burial Sites In Iceland Suggests That Viking Age Warriors Preferred Male Horses. [Internet]. www.inquisitr.com. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Burials Suggest Icelandic Vikings Had a Thing for Stallions. [Internet]. www.smithsonianmag.com. Full text in Research Archive
• Leifsson, Rúnar; Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Horses buried with Icelandic Viking nobles were male, ancient DNA shows. [Internet]. CBC news. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2019). Powerful Icelandic Vikings were buried with stallions. [Internet]. Heritage daily. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Star, Bastiaan; Leifsson, Rúnar; Gondek, Agata Teresa & Orlando, Ludovic [Show all 8 contributors for this article] (2019). Which horse should we sacrifice? Sex as a determining factor for the selection of horses in Viking Age burials in Iceland. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2019). Hverjar eru elstu þekktu leifar um ketti á Norðurlöndum? Vísindavefurinn. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2018). Voru hrafnar á Íslandi fyrir landnám eða er íslenski hrafninn afkomandi hrafna Hrafna-Flóka? (Were there ravens in Iceland before settlement or are Icelandic ravens the descendants of the ravens of Hrafna-Flóki?). Icelandic Web of Science. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2018). Sauðkindin og dýrabeinafornleifafræði (The Zooarchaeology of the Icelandic Sheep). Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2018). Ancient ‘Iceman’ shows signs of a well-balanced last meal. [Internet]. AP news, Associated Press. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2018). Insides of ancient 'Iceman' shows signs of a well-balanced last meal. [Internet]. NBC Newa. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Barrett, James H.; Boessenkool, Sanne; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2018). Folum fórnað. [Internet]. Bændablaðið online. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Boessenkool, Sanne; Barrett, James H.; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn; Leifsson, Rúnar & Nistelberger, Heidi Maria [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2018). Mektige islandske vikinger fikk hingster med seg i graven. [Internet]. Titan.no. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Boessenkool, Sanne; Barrett, James H.; Leifsson, Rúnar; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria & Orlando, Ludovic [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2018). Powerful Icelandic Vikings were buried with stallions. [Internet]. Titan.no. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2018). The origins of Viking sheep. York Archaeological Trust website. https://www.yorkarchaeology.co.uk/get-involved/investing-in-people/albina-hulda-palsdottir/. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Blauer, Auli & Rannamäe, Eva (2018). Sample now or save for later? Destructive sampling of archaeological animal remains. Full text in Research Archive
• Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Star, Bastiaan; Leifsson, Rúnar; Gondek, Agata Teresa & Orlando, Ludovic [Show all 9 contributors for this article] (2018). Sexing Viking Age horses from burial and non-burial sites in Iceland using ancient DNA. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Weldenegodguad, Melak; Kantanen, Juha; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn & Boessenkool, Sanne (2018). Archaeogenomics of Viking Age Sheep in the North Atlantic. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Weldenegodguad, Melak; Kantanen, Juha; Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn & Boessenkool, Sanne (2018). Viking Age Sheep in the North Atlantic. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2018). Sheep vs Goats - Ep04 https://www.archaeologypodcastnetwork.com/animals/04. [Internet]. ArchaeoAnimals podcast. Full text in Research Archive
• Nistelberger, Heidi Maria; Star, Bastiaan; Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Gondek, Agata; Leifsson, Rúnar & Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn [Show all 12 contributors for this article] (2018). Viking Horses of the North Atlantic. Full text in Research Archive
• Hallsson, Jón Hallsteinn & Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2017). Viking origin of native breeds in the North Atlantic? Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The voyages of the Vikings, starting in the late 8th century, did not only spread Viking culture and language throughout the North Atlantic but also moved animals of several domestic species - sheep, cattle, horse, goats, dogs, pigs, and chicken – around the whole of Northern Europe. In some cases, it is believed that modern breeds are direct descendants of animals brought by Vikings while in other cases it is believed that those breeds have been mixed and/or replaced by others. Although we do have a good understanding of where the Vikings travelled and settled, exactly how the Viking diaspora shaped the genetic composition and diversity in the North Atlantic domestic animals has not been fully explained. Although much has been written about individual domestic breeds a comprehensive overview is missing; here we aim to present an overview of native breeds in the region, what is known about their origin and how plausible it is that they remain relics of Viking migration rather than more modern immigrants.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2017). Sample now or save for later? Destructive analysis of domesticate bones from archaeofaunal collections. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Destructive sampling of animal bones from archaeological excavations is becoming more common. The refinement of ancient DNA technology, the use of next-generation sequencing, and the rapidly lowering cost of whole genome sequencing has led to a rapid growth in the field of ancient DNA analysis. This has again led to increased interest in destructive sampling of animal bones from archaeological excavations. Recent advances have shown that the petrous bone of the skull best preserves DNA in ancient samples which will lead to increased sampling pressure for that element. The ethical implications of destructive sampling for aDNA are not the same for every species due factors like size differences between species and large variations in rarity. Discussions of the ethical implications of destructive sampling have been largely absent in the zooarchaeological literature. Due to the increase in destructive sampling zooarchaeologists, as specialists in ancient animal bones, need to seriously consider these issues both within their discipline as well as with the specialists outside the field that are driving most of these studies.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2017). The Archaeogenomics of Viking sheep: Project update. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2017). The Sheep and Horses of the Vikings: Archaeogenomics of Domesticates in the North Atlantic. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2017). THE ORIGINS OF ICELANDIC HORSES AND SHEEP WITH GRANDMA’S ICELANDIC LAMB SADDLE RECIPE. [Internet]. Cooking with Archaeologists. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Zooarchaeologists Albina Hulda Palsdottir is a Ph.D. candidate at the University of Oslo. Her research focuses on the origins of the horses and sheep that were brought to Iceland in the 9th century. The project is called, “The Sheep and Horses of the Vikings: Archaeogenomics of Domesticates in the North Atlantic.” Anyone who has an interest in ancient DNA should have a listen to this podcast!

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Arge, Símun V. (2017). Fornílegur hjá húsdjórum í útnorðri, ein verkætlan http://savn.fo/00006/01261/. [Internet]. Sovn landsins/Faroese National Heritage website. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2016). Hestar og sauðfé víkinganna: Fornerfðafræði húsdýra í Norður-Atlantshafi. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2016). Livestock movements in the North Atlantic. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2016). Livestock movements in the North Atlantic. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Livestock movements in the North Atlantic The settlers of the Faroe Islands and Iceland brought with them domestic livestock animals, cattle, horses, sheep, goats, pigs and dogs. Little is known about the origin of these animals and how the breeds formed and adapted to the climate of the North Atlantic Islands. My research is interdisciplinary and uses traditional zooarchaeological methods and ancient DNA to study livestock origins and movement in the North Atlantic. I will also be exploring the importance of local collaboration in international research projects and the dissemination of results both to the local population and the local academic community.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2016). The Sheep and Horses of the Vikings: Archaeogenomics of Domesticates in the North Atlantic. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  The Sheep and Horses of the Vikings: Archaeogenomics of Domesticates in the North Atlantic Albína Hulda Pálsdóttir Centre for Ecological and Evolutionary Synthesis, Department of Biosciences, University of Oslo, Norway and Faculty of Land and Animal Resources, Agricultural University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland albinap@gmail.com Viking settlers introduced a range of domestic animals to Iceland, Faroe Islands and Greenland in the 9th and 10th centuries. Many of these animals have been an important part of agriculture in this region since settlement. The primary aims of my project are to determine the origin of sheep and horses in the North Atlantic, and to understand the human selection of traits relating to the products from sheep and the religious and ritual importance of horses in the Viking Age. This project will deepen the understanding of how the rapid settlement of the North Atlantic shaped the population structure and genetic diversity of sheep and horses in the region and how they have changed in the thousand years since settlement. Furthermore, understanding the adaptation and development of modern livestock breeds is imperative to the successful management of genetic resources, since the crossing of traditional breeds with modern, high-producing commercial breeds, can lead an irreversible loss of valuable adaptive traits. Sheep are ideally suited to the landscapes and climate of the islands of the North Atlantic and mostly served a utilitarian purpose in Viking society, providing food and wool for clothing. They quickly became the most economically important domestic animal in the North Atlantic but little is known about the genomic composition of Viking Age sheep or their contributions to modern breeds. To date, ancient DNA analyses of sheep are limited and most ongoing work focuses on older time periods (e.g. the Neolithic and Bronze ages). The horse had a very different role in society since it was of central cultural and ritual importance during the Viking Age in additions to its use in transportation, agriculture and warfare. We will obtain and analyze archaeological bone material from around the North Atlantic and Scandinavia and compare these with modern breeds in the region. The project will combine zooarchaeological analyses with genomics, applying the latest advances in high throughput sequencing and ancient DNA analysis. Using this multidisciplinary approach will allow us to assemble a unique dataset in which we observe broad biogeographic patterns, functional traits as well as societal aspects such as herding techniques.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2021). Fornar rætur Árbæjar – Dýrabeinagreining: Áfangaskýrsla 2021. Íslenskar fornleifarannsóknir ehf og Icelandic ZooArch Reykjavík. ISSN 9789935964113. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Boessenkool, Sanne & Star, Bastiaan (2021). Ancient DNA sexing of walrus bones from Alþingisreitur, Iceland. Íslenskar fornleifarannsóknir ehf og Icelandic ZooArch. ISSN 9789935964106. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Boessenkool, Sanne (2020). Sheep and Goat Skulls from Follobanen Bispegata Oslo, Norway: Ancient DNA Sampling Report. Agricultural University of Iceland. ISSN 9789979881940. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Caprine skulls from Follobanen Bispegata excavation in Oslo Five partial caprine skulls from the excavation in Follobanen Bispegata in Oslo (Berge, Ødeby, Holmen, Derrick, & Helstad, In prep) were given to us for possible ancient DNA sampling as part of the project “The Horses and Sheep of the Vikings: Archaeogenomics of Domesticates in the North Atlantic Research”. Only two of the skulls had a petrous bone which is preferred for sampling for ancient DNA as it often has excellent DNA preservation (Hansen et al., 2017; Pinhasi et al., 2015). Since the focus of the project was acquiring ancient DNA samples from sheep (Ovis aries) skulls from goats (Capra hircus, see below) were not sampled even if the petrous bone was present.

• Smith, Kevin P.; Ólafsson, Guðmundur; Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Sigurðsson, Magnús (2019). Hallmundarhellir Cave: Report of Investigations, 2017. Haffenreffer Museum of Anthropology, Brown University. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  Hallmundarhellir is one of eight caves within western Iceland’s Hallmundarhraun lava field that are known to contain archaeological remains. The site was discovered in 1956 by its landowner, Stefán Kalmansson of Kalmanstunga, and was briefly investigated by Gísli Gestsson in 1958. On July 27, 2017 we revisited Hallmundarhellir with a film crew; mapped it; took samples for radiocarbon dating, aDNA analysis, and zooarchaeological evaluation; and re-assessed its condition, its archaeological remains, and Gestsson’s pioneering interpretations. Gestsson’s report, published in 1960, was the only archaeological documentation of this important site before our visit. In the absence of radiocarbon dates or diagnostic objects, he interpreted it as a Viking Age outlaw shelter, and perhaps the model for Hallmundur’s lair in Grettir’s Saga. As such, Hallmundarhellir not only entered the archaeological record as a Viking Age outlaw site but also entered into debates about the historicity of the Íslendingasögur and the ways saga authors framed their scenes. Our investigations documented that the site’s archaeological features and deposits remain intact, but the cave’s walls and ceiling are fragile. Sand blowing in from outwash plains below Langjökull and Eiríksjökull already covers the site’s floor and will choke its entrance soon. We determined that Gestsson’s mapping was accurate but under-estimated the number of archaeological features and the site’s complexity. Our evaluation of the site’s faunal assemblage suggests that it is unusually composed of bones from just sheep or sheep/goats. No horse teeth (mentioned in Gestsson’s report) were identified, nor were any additional artifacts seen or recovered. Five AMS dates on sheep bones from the site indicate that it was built and used during the late-12th through mid-13th century, the so-called Age of the Sturlungs. Our investigations, therefore, indicate that Hallmundarhellir remains in good shape but is endangered. Rather than being a Viking Age outlaw shelter, it represents a new type of site from the Sturlung era.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Smith, Kevin P. (2019). Zooarchaeological analysis of bones from Hallmundarhellir cave. Agricultural University of Iceland. ISSN 9789979881568. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2019). Tooth wear of calf mandibles from the Icelandic ZooArch reference collection. Agricultural University of Iceland. ISSN 9789979881926. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  This report documents the wear stages of mandibular teeth of the calf skeletons in the Icelandic ZooArch reference collection. The purpose of the data collection is to refine the aging of cattle mandibles from very young animals, as a part of Lena Strid’s PhD project on vellum production and use in Scandinavia in the medieval period. Currently, there are two complete calf (Bos taurus) skeletons in the Icelandic ZooArch reference collections from individuals with known age at death. Both calves are of the Icelandic cattle breed and come from the Agricultural University of Iceland (AUI) Dairy Farm, Hvanneyrarbúið. Full information about each specimen can be found in Table 3.The skeletons were prepared by first being de‐fleshed and then cleaned with water maceration as is the standard preparation method for the IcelandicZooArch reference collection (Pálsdóttir & Skúladóttir, 2016, 2018). Tooth wear was recorded for right and left mandibles from both individual following Grant (1982). The mandibles were also photographed from various angles with a scale

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda (2019). The animal bones found in Vatnsvik, lake Þingvallavatn, Iceland. Open Context. Full text in Research Archive
• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda & Skarphéðinsson, Indriði (2019). The Animal Bones from Litlibær, Nes, Iceland. Agricultural University of Iceland. ISSN 9789979881780. Full text in Research Archive Show summary

  At Litlibær in Nes Iceland a small fisherman’s cottage, built around 1900 turned summerhouse and abandoned in the 1930s, was excavated. The total number of bones recorded in the Litlibær archaeofauna was 1135 (TNF) and the number of identified specimens (NISP) was 907. The range of species found at Litlibær was quite wide for a collection of such a modest size indicating that the inhabitants of Litlibær made good use of the wild animal resources available to them around the coast. The domestic mammal group is dominated by bones from sheep/goat. A small number of cattle bones was found at the site but interestingly most of them come from the lower limbs of very young calves. The collection included two rat bones which are rare finds in Iceland. The collection included a single human molar with cavity. The bird bones from Litlibær reflect the coastal location of the site and show that the inhabitants routinely hunted sea birds for food. They also likely kept chickens. The fish bone from Litlibær mostly consists of gadid bones with haddock (Melanogramus aeglfinus) and cod (Gadus morhua) being most common. A few flatfish bones were also found at the site, size and elements found indicate subsistence fishing.

• Palsdottir, Albina Hulda; Boessenkool, Sanne & Star, Bastiaan (2018). Ancient DNA sampling report Walrus bones from Alþingisreitur. Landbúnaðarháskóli Íslands. ISSN 9789979881711. Full text in Research Archive

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