Antiquities were overlooked

The City Council admits to inadvertently damaging one of the oldest settlements in Klaksvík, Akursmørk.

“Our work has simply been inadequate,” says Kristian Eli Zachariasen, chairman of the Environmental and Town Planning Committee.

Klaksvík City Council started constructing a new grove at Akursmørk without realising that the area contains antiquities. The antiquities emerged after the excavation work had started.

“The City Council takes full responsibility for this mistake,” says Zachariasen.

The council has a list of historic preservation sites and buildings, which it has made good use of in relation to previous projects, but this time something went wrong, he adds.

“We probably simply weren’t aware that the area contained period pieces. That is our fault entirely.”

A known antiquity site

It has long been known that a large number of antiquities are buried in Klaksvík.

Akursmørk is believed to be the oldest settlement in Klaksvík, and the area is included on the National Museum’s map of antiquity sites in the Faroe Islands.

It is also mentioned as an antiquity site in historian Hans Andrias Sølvará’s ‘The History of Klaksvík’.

The City Council and the National Museum are currently assessing the extent of the damage and how to proceed with the construction work at Akursmørk.

Zachariasen is keen to add that the City Council has reviewed its procedures to ensure that similar mistakes to not occur in the future.

Translated by prosa.fo