Giantess Cave

The day before her sixth birthday, Sigga was sent by her mom to pick berries in the Icelandic mountains. That day, she went further and higher than ever before, where she met a nice and friendly Giantess.

The encounter of Sigga and the gentle Giantess is told in the popular children’s book Sigga og skessan í fjallinu. Written in 1959, this story is the first of 16 children books by popular Icelandic writer Herdís Egilsdottir. In the last book of the series, the gentle Giantess rescues fishermen lost in a violent storm. To thank her, the mayor and citizens of Reykjanesbær constructed her a nice, cozy cave by the harbor.

It’s said that the giantess moved in her new home in 2008, during the festival of lights. Created by the Nordanbal Art Group, “The Black Cave” contains an oversized bed, a giant chair, and in the kitchen, the Giantess. Asleep in a rocking chair, the 16-foot-tall (5 meters) tall Giantess snores and farts loudly in her sleep, to the great amusement of visiting children.

The Black Cave and the Giantess are located by the marina near the very west end of Keflavík, in the municipality of Reykjanesbær. A sign “Skessuhellir” (Cave of Giganta) and oversized painted footsteps indicate the location of the cave.