Wooden sticks from Greenland with Runic inscriptions promise more…
This summer archaeologist dug at Garðar in Southern Greenland, the medieval bishopric. Here five tiny wooden sticks were found in a refuse heap – all with runic inscriptions.
Since then runologists at the national Museum in Copenhagen as well as elsewhere have been busy trying to decipher the tiny texts. Complicated by the fact that the small pieces of wood have to be kept wet in order to be conserved later, the reading is not that easy (the water in the plexi basin interferes). However, the results so far are:
- A piece of wood with the Latin inscription “…et benedictus fructus ventris tui” meaning ‘and blessed is the fruit of thy womb’; the end of the Ave Maria prayer. Interestingly enough this piece is written with runes much like those used in Sigtuna in Sweeden.
- A cross arm with on side the inscription: ..father and … (and on the other side of the arm) … holy John. Such crosses have been found at Herjolfsnæs, but never before at Garðar
- A carved stick with very tiny runes, probably a piece for practicing.
- A piece covered with what is called “løn-runer” – encoded or magic runes. The scholars are still undecided about the actual meaning.
- Another undecipherable piece
Anything amazing about these fragments? Yes once again – according to the runologist Lisbeth Imer – the finds show how ordinary it must have been for the Scandinavians in medieval Greenland to be literate. Up until now more than 150 sticks, fragments or artefacts with runic inscriptions have been found. Even at the tiny farms on the fringes of the settlement such pieces of inscribed wood are prevalent. In Southern Scandinavia the archaeological conditions are not at all the same. Hence such finds are extremely rare. Finding them on the fringes of the society in the nearly godforsaken firths on the West Coast of Greenland tells us they must have been pretty prevalent in Southern Scandinavia as well. However, we are seldom that lucky…
READ MORE:
New finds of Runes in Greenland