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The exhibition Fish & folk – 150 years of fisheries at the Reykjavík Maritime Museum is about the history of the Icelandic fisheries, from the time when rowing boats gave way to large fishing vessels in the late 19th century, through to the 21st century. This rich history is told from the perspective of Iceland’s biggest fishing port, Reykjavík. The location of the Maritime Museum’s is an appropriate one, as the building once housed a flourishing fish factory.
Visitors enter the exhibition on the lower floor of the Maritime Museum, where a silent film on a huge screen projects images of fish and people. The route continues up the stairs to the upper floor of the Museum. The wall tiles lining the staircase are printed with the poem “Ode to the Codfish” – written by Hannes Hafstein in praise of this finny “hero” of Iceland’s campaign for independence. At the head of the staircase is a mural of drawings by Jón Baldur Hlídberg of Icelandic fish, with their names in Icelandic, English and Latin.
Reykjavik Maritime Museum is at Grandagardur (Orfirisey)
Reykjavik Sightseeing bus hop on hop off stops at Reykjavik Maritime Museume
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