Systrastapi

Suðurland · Iceland · Natural site

On this rock stack by Kirkjubæjarklaustur rest two burned nuns – one grave stays green, the other remains forever barren.

Systrastapi, the 'sisters' rock', is a steep free-standing crag just west of Kirkjubæjarklaustur, where a convent operated from 1186. Legend holds that two nuns were burned at the stake by the rock: one for selling herself to the Devil, carrying consecrated bread to the privy and lying with men, the other for speaking blasphemously of the Pope. Both were buried on the summit, where two grassy mounds are pointed out as their graves – one perpetually green, the other forever bare and grown with thorns. After the Reformation one sister was declared to have been innocent, the flowers on her grave taken as proof. The crag can be climbed and ranks among the most legend-laden spots on the south coast.

FAQ

Where is Systrastapi located?

Systrastapi is in Suðurland, Iceland.

More haunted places in Suðurland

• Eyrarbakki Suðurland · Urban site
• The Ghost Centre, Stokkseyri Suðurland · Museum
• Drekkingarhylur at Þingvellir Suðurland · Natural site
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• Gunnuhver Suðurnes · Natural site
• Höfði House Reykjavík · House
• Bessastaðir Höfuðborgarsvæðið · Manor
• Hólavallagarður Cemetery Reykjavík · Cemetery

Accounts are drawn from local folklore and visitor reports.