A View of the North - Guided Tour with Sumarliði R. Ísleifsson on Museum Night
Welcome to a guided tour of the exhibition A View of the North with Sumarliði R. Ísleifsson at the Reykjavík Maritime Museum. The guided tours take place on Museum Night, Friday 6 February at 19:00 and 20:00. Free admission and everyone is welcome! ---PLEASE NOTICE: Spoken language Icelandic--- Sumarliði will sign his books, "Í fjarska norðursins" and "Iceland and Greenland", after the second tour at around 21:00. The books are available in the Maritime Museum shop. The exhibition A View of the North is displayed in the Engine Room of the Reykjavík Maritime Museum. It explores Arctic expeditions undertaken by French travellers and is a collaboration between the Reykjavík City Museum and the School of Humanities at the University of Iceland. In May 1835, the French naval surgeon and adventurer Paul Gaimard arrived in Reykjavík in search of the ship La Lilloise, but became captivated by the country and its people. He led the largest foreign scientific expedition ever to Iceland, accompanied by scholars and artists who studied the nation’s culture, society, and natural environment in 1835–1836. Their findings were published in 12 volumes, which became an important source on 19th‑century Iceland and had a profound impact on both the country’s image and Icelanders’ own self‑perception. Sumarliði R. Ísleifsson holds a PhD in history. He has long researched the image and representation of Iceland and Greenland, publishing articles and books on the subject — including "Í fjarska norðursins", a work on changing views of Iceland and Greenland from the Middle Ages to the present. The event is part of the Reykjavík City Museum’s Museum Night programme.
Accessibility for people with reduced mobility is good at the Maritime Museum, especially at the Grandagarður entrance. There is an elevator between floors.