58 THE VINLAND VOYAGES 



Although the Norwegians and Danes knew about the 

 voyages of Thorfinn and Leif , they did not, as far as 

 the records go, make any attempt to explore those 

 countries or settle there. As time went on they pos- 

 sibly forgot all about Vinland or ceased to believe in 

 it, since for the most part they were occupied with 

 other matters. The Icelanders knew and recorded the 

 accounts of Thorfinn and Leif relating to their dis- 

 coveries and explorations, but none of their country- 

 men cared to follow their footsteps. The Icelandic 

 colony in Greenland remembered and treasured a 

 long time, possibly so long as it existed, these re- 



spent some time at the Court. He is described as follows: "Audun 

 was a man who knew how to comport himself among people with 

 ease and grace; he was good-natured, careful of speech, and a man of 

 few words. He was a general favorite, and King Svein was especially 

 friendly to him." Late in the spring he went to Norway and was 

 received by King Harald Hardredy. He went back to Iceland that 

 summer. It is possible to ascertain the date of Audun's travels fairly 

 accurately. According to the way in which the Tale mentions King 

 Harald, it must have been before peace was established between him 

 and King Svein, that is previous to 1064 or a few years before Adam 

 of Bremen visited King Svein. It is not unlikely that King Svein asked 

 Audun many things about Greenland, particularly since he had con- 

 fidence in his reliability. It is scarcely conceivable that Audun did not 

 tell about the Vinland voyages; in fact, he presumably quoted some 

 of the men who were with Leif and Thorfinn. An English transla- 

 tion of the tale about Audun is to be found in the introduction to 

 Sir George W. Dasent's translation of The Story of Burnt Njal (2 

 vols., Edinburgh, 1861), Vol. i, pp. clxxiv-clxxxiii. 



