The Dark CastlesKnown to Icelanders as Dimmuborgir, a zone of amazing lava structures marks the plac

The Dark CastlesKnown to Icelanders as Dimmuborgir, a zone of amazing lava structures marks the place where a tube system collapsed when the remaining molten rock drained away. These often form in fluid hot lava like the typical basalt that erupts along the mid-Atlantic spreading ridge. As the glowing stream flows downhill, the top freezes, forming a crust and eventually a roof (one should always test a fresh lava field with a metal pokey stick, breaking through and dipping your leg into 1200 degree basalt isn’t much fun).They resemble a collapsed fortress eaten away by the ravages of time, and are a popular tourist attraction. The 10 metre deep lava flow pooled over a marshy lake, flashing it into steam and the rising vapour formed pillars of frozen rock up to several metres across. The top crust between the pillars then collapsed, and a further couple of thousand years of erosion resulted in the place one sees today. The site is set lower than the surrounding rock, which conserves the surface of the original flow. One of the structures, a collapsed tube (photo3) is known as the church, and we can clearly see the hardened crust that once formed its roof. The eruption happened some 2,300 years ago, before the island was inhabited.In legend, the Dark Castle is home to Gryla, a terrible troll and her naughty offspring known as the Yule Lads (with names like Spoon-Licker and Window-Peeper), who have played the role of Santa Claus and Bogeymen for generations of local children, leaving the naughty ones rotten spuds in their stockings. The place was also an entry site to the underworld, and Satan supposedly landed there when thrown out of paradise. The name has also inspired a heavy metal band, which made this place tricky to research, since they dominate googles’ informational offerings.LozImage credit: 1: Jason Paris 2: Gesturpa~commonswiki ‘The Church’: chmee2 valtamerihttp://bit.ly/1NBrZMEhttp://bit.ly/1Y5eKOzhttp://bit.ly/1T5P8dK -- source link

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