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Bankastræti (, ) is a street in
Reykjavík Reykjavík is the Capital city, capital and largest city in Iceland. It is located in southwestern Iceland on the southern shore of Faxaflói, the Faxaflói Bay. With a latitude of 64°08′ N, the city is List of northernmost items, the worl ...
's city centre which runs from the west ends of
Laugavegur Laugavegur () is a hiking trail in South Iceland. It is the most popular trail in Iceland, with an estimated 75,000-100,000 people hiking it every year. In 2012, National Geographic listed it as one of the twenty best trails in the world. Lau ...
and Skólavörðustígur to the intersection at
Lækjartorg Lækjartorg (, "brook square") is a square in downtown Reykjavík, Iceland. It is located in Kvosin south of Reykjavík Harbor, where Bankastræti, Lækjargata and Austurstræti meet. Reykjavík District Court faces the square. References

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. It has, since the nineteenth century, been one of the main streets of Reykjavík.


History

With the building of a bridge over Lækinn, the stream running from
Tjörnin Tjörnin () is a small, prominent lake in central Reykjavík, the capital of Iceland. Most visitors to the city pass along its shore, as it is situated in the city centre next to the Reykjavik City Hall and several museums. ''Tjörnin'' means "t ...
along what is now Lækjargata, in 1828, Bankarstræti, along with the contiguous Austurstræti and Laugavegur, became some of the most important streets in Reykjavík. The street saw Reykjavík's first street light, an oil-lamp beside Lækjartorg. Since the earlier twentieth century, the street has been one-way. Since 2012, Bankastræti, along with Laugarvegur and Skólavörðustígur, has been pedestrianised during the summer as part of the 'sumar götur eru sumargötur' ('some streets are summerstreets') scheme.


Name

Bankastræti is now named after Landsbanki Íslands, which commenced operation at 3 Bankastræti on July 1, 1886. It was previously named Bakarabrekka bakery hill' named for Bernhöftsbakarí ernhöft's Bakery which was from 1834 in the old houses at Bankastræti number 2. The name Bakarabrekka is no longer used for Bankastræti, but is still used of the grassy slope below Bernhöftstorfan at the corner of Bankastræti and Lækjargata. The statue ''Vatnsberinn'' ('the water-carrier') by
Ásmundur Sveinsson Ásmundur Sveinsson (20 May 1893 – 9 December 1982) was an Icelandic sculptor, whose works include “ Thor's gavel”, the ornate gavel used by the President of United Nations General Assembly. Early years Ásmundur Sveinsson was born in Kol ...
stands on the slope, along with a large outdoor chess set with pieces made by the sculptor Jón Gunnar Árnason.


Public toilets

The street gives its name to the so-called ''Almenningssalernið Núllið'' ('Public Toilet Zero') or ''Bankastræti núll'' ('0 Bank Street'), a public toilet which is located at the bottom of Bankastræti before number 1. It is in two parts, the men's toilet on one side of the street and the women's on the other, underground, so only the entrance is visible at the surface. The toilets have been closed since 2006. These toilets give their name to Einar Már Guðmundsson's 2009 book '' Bankastræti núll''; reminiscing about what they were like around the 1980s, Einar Már associates them with 'undirheimum, kulda, kynlífi, forvitni, bannhelgi, undarlegum manni í hvítum sloppi, áfengislykt, smokkum og hlandi, blóðhlaunum augum, rónum að pissa' ('the underworld, cold, sex, curiosity, taboos, a strange man in a white coat, the smell of alcohol, condoms and urine, bloodshot eyes, drunkards pissing').Einar Már Guðmundsson, ''Bankastræti núll'' (Reykjavík: Mál og Menning, 2011), p. 27.


Further reading

* Guðný Gerður Gunnarsdóttir and Mjöll Snæsdóttir, ''Þingholt: Bankastræti - Þingholtsstræti - Amtmannsstígur - Ingólfsstræti'' (Reykjavík: Árbæjarsafn, 1985)


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bankastraeti Shopping districts and streets in Iceland Streets in Reykjavík Tourist attractions in Iceland