Brynjólfur Sveinsson (14 September 1605 – 5 August 1675) served as the Lutheran Bishop of the see of Skálholt in Iceland.

[5] In 1650 King Frederick III appointed Brynjólfur to succeed the late Stephanius as Royal Danish Historian.

One of his first acts was to request all people residing in his diocese to turn over to the King any old manuscripts, either an original or a copy, as a gift or for a price.

[6] Among the most monumental of the Icelandic manuscripts thus collected is the Flateyjarbók, which was secured only after a personal visit to the owner from Brynjólfur.

Jón Finnsson of Flatey, Breiðafjörður, who owned the manuscript, was initially unwilling to give up his precious heirloom.