Björn had a long career as an art-historian, teacher and writer, and sent forward numerous books on art-history as well as novels and essays. He has written numerous articles for Icelandic and foreign magazines and journals and done documentaries on cultural matters and history for radio and television. Björn's first novel, Virkisvetur(Fort's Winter) was published in 1959 and received first prize in a competition held by Iceland's Educational Board. His historical novels continue to be very popular in Iceland, and his books on Icelandic and foreign art-history are also widely read.