LJÓSBRÁ

The stone and mineral collection was owned by Sigurður Pálsson (Siggi) and Sigrún Sigfúsdóttir who started collecting when they lived in Höfn in Hornarfjörður around 1960.

    Sigurður was a policeman there and soon he became head of county. The couple met Gísli Arason (100 year old collector and still living in Höfn) and he taught them the tips and tricks of the collector.

      Few years later they moved from the East fjords and all the way to the West side of the island. With their three sons, Ingvar, Sævar and Sigmar, they settled and move to the fishing village Stykkishólmur. On their travels around the West fjords, they continued collecting and expanded their collection a lot. They didn't only collect rocks, stones and minerals they liked, but went on specific hikes all around the island to find different samples. Sigurður had books about the geology of Iceland and was becoming one heck of a self-trained geologist. He even went on trips and hikes abroad to find specific samples and fossils.
              More and more fossils were collected and so their whole collection showed vastness and variety which would become quite unique in the Icelandic collecting world.

     They moved again and now to the South coast, in more detail, Hveragerði - The Blossoming town. There they continued their travels, hiking and collecting and their sons would also come along. They ran Hótel Ljósbrá and alongside it Ból Hostel. They had tours and excursions for tourists and were entrepreneurs in that industry which now has become a big thing in Iceland where there are many companies, big and small alike, that do tours and excursions. 

      Siggi and Sigrún have now past away and Ingvar, their oldest son, inherited their collection. He and his daughter's family (Sjöfn, Hafsteinn and three grandsons) decided to gather the whole collection and put it on display for the first time. It had always been their dream to open up a exhibition and now it has become a reality. The name of the museum in english is Hveragerði - Stone & Mineral Museum and in Icelandic Ljósbrá - Steinasafn (hence the hotels name)

The family has been known for doing all sorts of artwork and crafting so here, in the one and same place, you are able to experience a tradition of collecting, a glance of beautiful specimens and pop into our workshop to see what we are up to and designing from day to day with our handcrafting.
We only use Icelandic woods, rocks and minerals in our crafting to make it even more authentic and special. A souvenir that has a story and meaning will give you a greater deal more in return and make your visit even more memorable.

We welcome you all and if there are any questions, don‘t hesitate to contact us.

Best regards,
The Ljósbrá Family