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LIFE OF THE ICELANDIC COLONY 107 up the coast and probably brought back cargoes of timber from Markland; they built substantial houses and churches, using huge stones in some cases. But they had to import grain, iron, FIG. 18 Sigurdr Stefansson's map of Greenland, 1590, showing the severance of Greenland from Europe and its union with the western land mass which includes Helluland, Markland, and Vinland. Cf. with Fig. 14. (From Torfaeus' "Gron- landia antiqua," Copenhagen, 1706, in the library of the American Geographical Society.) and many other articles from Europe; and the infrequent visits of ships from Iceland, Norway, and elsewhere must have made a break in the monotony of their lives which they could ill afford to forego. One would expect them to be especially kind to such visitors.