Uppland Runic Inscription Fv1946;258
Encyclopedia
This runic inscription, designated as U Fv1946;258 in the Rundata
catalog, is on a Viking Age
memorial
to two fathers that is located in Fällbro, which is about 5 kilometers northwest of Täby
, Stockholm County
, Sweden
, which is in the historic province of Uppland
.
carved on a serpent that is intertwined in an intricate design. Above the serpent is the figure of a man with raised arms. The inscription is classified as being carved in runestone style Pr4, which is also known as Urnes style
. This runestone style is characterized by slim and stylized animals that are interwoven into tight patterns. The animal heads are typically seen in profile with slender almond-shaped eyes and upwardly curled appendages on the noses and the necks.
The runic text states that the inscription is a memorial by by three sons in memory of their father. There are two tranliterations of the runic text documented in Rundata
, the first, which is designated below as P, was performed by Sven B. F. Jansson and published in 1946, and the second, which is designated below as Q, was published in 1997. There are several differences between the two versions based not only on the reading of the runes, but also upon assumptions made regarding missing letters or assumed misspellings from the transliteration to the transcription into Old Norse
. Such assumptions are required since letters were often deliberately left out of the runic text under several accepted rules when carving inscriptions on runestones. For the text on U Fv1946;258, in the 1946 version Jansson transcribed the runes rauþkar, the name of the father, as an odd spelling of the Germanic name HroðgæiR, which means "Honor Spear." This interpretation, which ignores the a-rune in the name, was later re-interpretted by Evert Salberger as being Rauðkar, a name given to a man with "red hair."
The text is signed by the runemaster
Visäte
, who was active during the last half of the eleventh century in southern Uppland. The runes (u)isiti * (r)i(s)ti, meaning Viseti risti ("Véseti carved"), are located near the head of the serpent. Seven other runestones signed by Visäte include U 74 Husby, U 208 Råcksta, U 236 Lindö, U 337 in Granby
, U 454 Kumla, U 669 Kålsta, and U 862 Säva. Over twenty additional runestones have been attributed to him on stylistic grounds.
The Rundata designation for this inscription, U Fv1946;258, is from the year and page number of the issue of Fornvännen
in which the inscription was first described.
Rundata
The Scandinavian Runic-text Data Base is a project involving the creation and maintenance of a database of runic inscriptions. The project's goal is to comprehensively catalog runestones in a machine-readable way for future research...
catalog, is on a Viking Age
Viking Age
Viking Age is the term for the period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, spanning the late 8th to 11th centuries. Scandinavian Vikings explored Europe by its oceans and rivers through trade and warfare. The Vikings also reached Iceland, Greenland,...
memorial
Memorial
A memorial is an object which serves as a focus for memory of something, usually a person or an event. Popular forms of memorials include landmark objects or art objects such as sculptures, statues or fountains, and even entire parks....
to two fathers that is located in Fällbro, which is about 5 kilometers northwest of Täby
Täby
Täby is a trimunicipal locality and the seat of Täby Municipality in Stockholm County, Sweden, with 58,593 inhabitants in 2005. It is also partly located in Danderyd Municipality and Sollentuna Municipality...
, Stockholm County
Stockholm County
Stockholm County is a county or län on the Baltic sea coast of Sweden. It borders Uppsala County and Södermanland County. It also borders Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. The city of Stockholm is the capital of Sweden. Stockholm County is divided by the historic provinces of Uppland and Södermanland...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, which is in the historic province of Uppland
Uppland
Uppland is a historical province or landskap on the eastern coast of Sweden, just north of Stockholm, the capital. It borders Södermanland, Västmanland and Gästrikland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea...
.
Description
This inscription was discovered in 1946 and is carved on a rockface of a cliff. The runic inscription, which is 2.23 meters high and 1.14 meters wide, consists of text in the younger futharkYounger Futhark
The Younger Futhark, also called Scandinavian runes, is a runic alphabet, a reduced form of the Elder Futhark, consisting of only 16 characters, in use from ca. 800 CE...
carved on a serpent that is intertwined in an intricate design. Above the serpent is the figure of a man with raised arms. The inscription is classified as being carved in runestone style Pr4, which is also known as Urnes style
Urnes style
The Urnes style was the last phase of Scandinavian animal art during the second half of the 11th century and in the early 12th century. The preceding phases of Scandinavia's Viking Age animal ornamentation are usually categorized as Oseberg style, Borre style, Jelling style, Mammen style and...
. This runestone style is characterized by slim and stylized animals that are interwoven into tight patterns. The animal heads are typically seen in profile with slender almond-shaped eyes and upwardly curled appendages on the noses and the necks.
The runic text states that the inscription is a memorial by by three sons in memory of their father. There are two tranliterations of the runic text documented in Rundata
Rundata
The Scandinavian Runic-text Data Base is a project involving the creation and maintenance of a database of runic inscriptions. The project's goal is to comprehensively catalog runestones in a machine-readable way for future research...
, the first, which is designated below as P, was performed by Sven B. F. Jansson and published in 1946, and the second, which is designated below as Q, was published in 1997. There are several differences between the two versions based not only on the reading of the runes, but also upon assumptions made regarding missing letters or assumed misspellings from the transliteration to the transcription into Old Norse
Old Norse
Old Norse is a North Germanic language that was spoken by inhabitants of Scandinavia and inhabitants of their overseas settlements during the Viking Age, until about 1300....
. Such assumptions are required since letters were often deliberately left out of the runic text under several accepted rules when carving inscriptions on runestones. For the text on U Fv1946;258, in the 1946 version Jansson transcribed the runes rauþkar, the name of the father, as an odd spelling of the Germanic name HroðgæiR, which means "Honor Spear." This interpretation, which ignores the a-rune in the name, was later re-interpretted by Evert Salberger as being Rauðkar, a name given to a man with "red hair."
The text is signed by the runemaster
Runemaster
A runemaster or runecarver is a specialist in making runestones.Most early medieval Scandinavians were probably literate in runes, and most people probably carved messages on pieces of bone and wood. However, it was difficult to make runestones, and in order to master it one also needed to be a...
Visäte
Visäte
Visäte was a runemaster who was active during the last half of the eleventh century in southern Uppland, Sweden.-Work:...
, who was active during the last half of the eleventh century in southern Uppland. The runes (u)isiti * (r)i(s)ti, meaning Viseti risti ("Véseti carved"), are located near the head of the serpent. Seven other runestones signed by Visäte include U 74 Husby, U 208 Råcksta, U 236 Lindö, U 337 in Granby
Granby Runestone
The Granby Runestone , designated as U 337 under the Rundata catalog, is the longest Viking Age runic inscription located in Uppland, Sweden.-Description:...
, U 454 Kumla, U 669 Kålsta, and U 862 Säva. Over twenty additional runestones have been attributed to him on stylistic grounds.
The Rundata designation for this inscription, U Fv1946;258, is from the year and page number of the issue of Fornvännen
Fornvännen
Fornvännen is a Swedish academic journal in the fields of archaeology and Medieval art. It is published quarterly by the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters in Stockholm, Sweden. The journal's contributions are written in the Scandinavian languages, English, or German with summaries in English...
in which the inscription was first described.
Transliteration of the runes into Latin characters
- P: * uikr * uk * utryk * uk * bali * lata * raisa * mirki * iftR * faþur sn * rauþkar * uk skib * þu-- * -i-a-----i-iti * uk ---... skib * fa-t
- Q: * uni(m)r * uk * utryk * uk * bali * lata * raisa * mirki * iftR * faþur sn * rauþkar * uk skib ' þu-ilia-- (u)isiti * (r)i(s)ti skibi * fa(s)ti
Transcription into Old Norse
- P: VigR ok OtryggR ok Balli lata ræisa mærki æftiR faður sinn HroðgæiR ok skip(?) ... ... ok ... skip(?)
- Q: OnæmR ok OtryggR ok Balli lata ræisa mærki æftiR faður sinn Rauðkar ok skip(?) ... Viseti risti, skip(?)
.
Translation in English
- P: Vígr and Ótryggr and Balli have raised the landmark in memory of their father Hróðgeirr and the ship(?) ... ... and ... ship(?) ...
- Q: Ónæmr and Ótryggr and Balli have raised the landmark in memory of their father Rauðkárr and the ship(?) ... Véseti carved, ship(?) ...
External links
- Photograph of inscription - Swedish National Heritage Board