the sagas, the historian Halvdan Koht dated the battle to about 900. For the next fifty years, this chronology was regarded by most scholars as being most likely. In the 1970s, the Icelandic historian Ólafia Einarsdóttir concluded that the battle took place somewhere between 870 and 875. However still disputed, most scholars will agree that the battle took place during the 880s. Memorials The national monument of Haraldshaugen was raised in 1872 to commemorate the Battle of Hafrsfjord. In 1983, the monument and landmark The Swords in the Rock (Sverd i fjell) was designed by Fritz Røed and raised at Hafrsfjord in memory of the battle. Sources The only contemporary source to this event is from Haraldskvæthi or Hrafnsmól (Lay of Harold), a ballad written by , the court poet of King Harald Fairhair. The ballad is very simple, dramatic and illustrative. {| | Heyrði þú í Hafrsfirði, || width=40 | || Did you hear in Hafrsfjord |- |hvé hizug barðisk || || how hard they fought |- |konungr enn kynstóri || || the high born king |- |við Kjötva enn auðlagða; || || against Kjotve the Rich. |- |knerrir kómu austan, || || ships came from the east |- |kapps of lystir, || || craving battle, |- |með gínöndum höfðum || || with gaping heads |- |ok gröfnum tinglum. || || and prows sculpted. |} The most well-known source of the battle is Harald Fairhair's saga in Heimskringla written by Snorri Sturluson more than 300 years after the battle took place. Snorri gives a vivid and detailed description of the battle, although some historians continue to debate the historical accuracy of Snorri's work: See also History of Norway Battle of Svolder Battle of Stiklestad References Other sources Forte, Angelo with Richard Oram and Frederik Pedersen (2005) Viking Empires (Cambridge University Press) Lincoln, Bruce (2014) Between History and Myth: Stories of Harald Fairhair and the Founding of the State (University of Chicago Press) Further reading In Norwegian Holmsen, Andreas (1977) Norges historie fra de eldste tider inntil 1660 (Universitetsforlaget AS) Einarsdottir, Olafia (2009) Vår norrøne fortid (TAGO-Atlantic förlag) Krag, Claus (2000) Norges historie fram til 1319 (Universitetsforlaget AS) External links Swords in Rock Hafrsfjord Hafrsfjord Hafrsfjord 870s conflicts 880s conflicts History of Rogaland H 9th century in Norway Harald Fairhair