Jón Sigurðsson was born on 17 June 1811, at Farmstead Hrafnseyri. The interesting, modern Jón Sigurðsson Memorial Museum (hrafnseyri.is, free, Jun-Sep 8 ) outlines his life and has a reconstruction of the turf house he grew up in, plus a 19th-century church and a small cafe. Arrive on Iceland's National Day (on Jón's birthday!) for a free cake and serious speeches on sovereignty and strength.
Free cake or not, Jón himself preferred life on the banks of Copenhagen's canals. He left Iceland at the age of 22 and never returned, pushing against Iceland’s loyalty to the Kingdom of Denmark with legal arguments, not the romantic nationalism of the freedom fighters before him.
The museum is signed off rutted Rte 60, which runs along the north side of Arnarfjörður. The road between Hrafnseyri and Þingeyri is closed for six to eight months in winter. Check www.road.is.
