Sigurd stones

The Sigurd stones form a group of seven or eight runestones and one image stone that depict imagery from the legend of Sigurd the dragon slayer. They were made during the Viking Age and they constitute the earliest Norse representations of the matter of the Nibelungenlied and the Sigurd legends in the Poetic Edda, the Prose Edda and the Völsunga saga.

Contents 1 Uppland 1.1 U 1163 1.2 U 1175 2 Södermanland 2.1 Sö 40 2.2 Sö 101 2.3 Sö 327 3 Gästrikland 3.1 Gs 2 3.2 Gs 9 3.3 Gs 19 4 Bohuslän 4.1 Bo NIYR;3 5 Gotland 5.1 Hunninge Image Stone 6 Sources and external links 7 External links 8 References

Uppland

U 1163

This runestone is in style Pr2. It was found in Drävle, but it was moved to the courtyard of the manor house Göksbo in the vicinity where it is presently raised. It has an image of Sigurd who thrusts his sword through the serpent, and the dwarf Andvari, as well as the Valkyrie Sigrdrífa who gives Sigurd a drinking horn.

Latin transliteration:

uiþbiurn × ok : karlunkr : ok × erinker : ok × nas(i) × litu × risa × stii × þina × eftir × eriibiun × f[aþu]r × sii × snelan

Old Norse transcription:

Viðbiorn ok KarlungR ok ÆringæiRR/Æringærðr ok Nasi/Næsi letu ræisa stæin þenna æftiR Ærinbiorn, faður sinn sniallan.

English translation:

"Viðbjôrn and Karlungr and Eringeirr/Eringerðr and Nasi/Nesi had this stone raised in memory of Erinbjôrn, their able father."

U 1175

This runestone is style Pr2 and it is located in Stora Ramsjö. It belongs to the nonsensical runestones that do not contain any runes, only runelike signs. The ornamentation is held to be an inferior copy of U 1163.

Latin transliteration:

...

Old Norse transcription:

...

English translation:

"..."

Södermanland

Sö 40

This runestone is located on the cemetery of the church of Västerljung, but it was originally found in the foundation of the church tower. It is in style Pr2 and it was made by the runemaster Skamhals. It depicts Gunnar playing the harp in the snake pit.

Latin transliteration:

haunefR + raisti * at * kaiRmar * faþur * sin + haa * iR intaþr * o * þiusti * skamals * hiak * runaR þaRsi +

Old Norse transcription:

HonæfR ræisti at GæiRmar, faður sinn. Hann eR ændaðr a Þiusti. Skammhals hiogg runaR þaRsi.

English translation:

"Hónefr raised (the stone) in memory of Geirmarr, his father. He met his end in Þjústr. Skammhals cut these runes."

Sö 101

The Ramsund carving is not quite a runestone as it is not carved into a stone, but into a flat rock close to Ramsund, Eskilstuna Municipality, Södermanland, Sweden. It is believed to have been carved around year 1000. It is generally considered an important piece of Norse art in runestone style Pr1.

The Ramsund carving in Sweden depicts 1) how Sigurd is sitting naked in front of the fire preparing the dragon heart, from Fafnir, for his foster-father Regin, who is Fafnir's brother. The heart is not finished yet, and when Sigurd touches it, he burns himself and sticks his finger into his mouth. As he has tasted dragon blood, he starts to understand the birds' song. 2) The birds say that Regin will not keep his promise of reconciliation and will try to kill Sigurd, which causes Sigurd to cut off Regin's head. 3) Regin is dead beside his own head, his smithing tools with which he reforged Sigurd's sword Gram are scattered around him, and 4) Regin's horse is laden with the dragon's treasure. 5) is the previous event when Sigurd killed Fafnir, and 6) shows Ótr from the saga's beginning. The writing is ambiguous, but one interpretation of the persons mentioned in the inscription, based on inscriptions on other runestones found nearby, is that Sigriþr (a woman) was the wife of Sigröd who has died. Holmgeirr is her father in law. Alrikr, son of Sigriþr, erected another stone for his father, named Spjut, so while Alrikr is the son of Sigriþr, he was not the son of Sigruþr. Alternatively, Holmgeirr is Sigriþr's second husband and Sigröd (but not Alrikr) is their son.

The inspiration for using the legend of Sigurd for the pictorial decoration was probably the close similarity of the names Sigurd (Sigurðr in Old Norse) and Sigröd.^[1][2]

It is raised by the same aristocratic family as the Bro Runestone and the Kjula Runestone. The reference to bridge-building in the runic text is fairly common in rune stones during this time period. Some are Christian references related to passing the bridge into the afterlife. At this time, the Catholic Church sponsored the building of roads and bridges through the use of indulgences in return for intersession for the soul.^[3] There are many examples of these bridge stones dated from the eleventh century, including runic inscriptions U 489 and U 617.^[3]

Latin transliteration:

siriþr : kiarþi : bur : þosi : muþiR : alriks : tutiR : urms : fur * salu : hulmkirs : faþur : sukruþar buata * sis *

Old Norse transcription:

Sigriðr gærði bro þasi, moðiR Alriks, dottiR Orms, for salu HolmgæiRs, faður SigrøðaR, boanda sins.

English translation:

"Sigríðr, Alríkr's mother, Ormr's daughter, made this bridge for the soul of Holmgeirr, father of Sigrøðr, her husbandman."

Sö 327

This runestone in style Pr1-Pr2 is located at Gök. It is from the same time as the Ramsund carving and it uses the same imagery, but a Christian cross has been added and the images are combined in a way that completely distorts the internal logic of events.^[4] The runemaster has either not understood the underlying myth, or he consciously distorted its representation.^[4] Whatever the reason may have been, the Gök stone illustrates how the pagan heroic mythos was going towards its dissolution, during the introduction of Christianity.^[4]

It has never been satisfactorily transcribed nor translated. Latin transliteration:

... (i)uraRi : kaum : isaio : raisti : stai : ain : þansi : at : : þuaR : fauþr : sloþn : kbrat : sin faþu... ul(i) * hano : msi +

Old Norse transcription:

...

English translation:

"..."

Gästrikland

Gs 2

This runestone in style Pr2 is at the church of Österfärnebo. It is not listed as a Sigurd runestone by the Rundata project, and only the bottom part of it remains.

Latin transliteration:

[ily]iki : ok : f[uluiki × ok : þurkair ... ...- × sin × snilan] : kuþ ilubi on(t)[a]

Old Norse transcription:

Illugi ok Fullugi ok ÞorgæiRR ... ... sinn sniallan. Guð hialpi anda.

English translation:

"Illugi and Fullugi and Þorgeirr ... their able ... May God help (his) spirit."

Gs 9

This runestone is found at the church of Årsunda. It shows Sigurd on the top of the runestone.

Latin transliteration:

(i)nu-r : sun : r[u]þ[u](r) at × [uili](t)... ...[Ris:]t eftir : þurker : bruþu[r : sin : ok : kyþe=lfi : muþur : sina : uk] : eft[i]R : [a]sbiorn : o[k : o]ifuþ

Old Norse transcription:

Anun[d]r(?), sunn <ruþur>(?) at <uilit...> ... æftiR ÞorgæiR, broður sinn, ok Guðælfi, moður sina ok æftiR Asbiorn ok <oifuþ>.

English translation:

"Ônundr(?), <ruþur>'s son, in memory of <uilit>... ... in memory of Þorgeirr, his brother and Guðelfr, his mother, and in memory of Ásbjôrn and <oifuþ>"

Gs 19

This runestone which is tentatively categorized as style Pr2 is located at the church of Ockelbo. The original runestone was found inside the church but it was destroyed together with the church in a fire. The present runestone is a copy made after drawings and it is raised outside the church. The illustrations include matter from the Sigurd legends.

Latin transliteration:

[blesa × lit × raisa × stain×kumbl × þesa × fa(i)(k)(r)(n) × ef(t)ir × sun sin × suar×aufþa × fr(i)þelfr × u-r × muþir × ons × siionum × kan : inuart : þisa × bhum : arn : (i)omuan sun : (m)(i)e(k)]

Old Norse transcription:

Blæsa let ræisa stæinkumbl þessa fagru æftiR sun sinn Svarthaufða. FriðælfR v[a]R moðiR hans <siionum> <kan> <inuart> <þisa> <bhum> <arn> <iomuan> sun <miek>.

English translation:

"Blesa had these fair stone-monuments raised in memory of his son Svarthôfði. Friðelfr was his mother. ... "

Bohuslän

Bo NIYR;3

This baptismal font from c. 1100 is made in slate. It was discovered in pieces on the cemetery of Norum in 1847. It shows Gunnar in the snake pit. The inscription ends with five identical bind runes of which the last two are mirrored.

svæn : kærðe <m>

Old Norse transcription:

Sveinn gerði m[ik](?).

English translation:

"Sveinn made me(?)."

Gotland

Hunninge Image Stone

The Hunninge image stone was found on Gotland and it illustrates imagery from the tradition of the Nibelungenliend. On the top of the stone, there is a man carrying a ring, who may be Sigurd or perhaps the messenger Knéfrøðr. On the bottom left, the scene depicts a woman watching the snake pit where Gunnar is lying

Sources and external links

• A personal page with information and pictures
• The article Sigurdsristningar in Nordisk familjebok (1917).
• An online article at the Museum of Foteviken
• Rundata

External links

• An English Dictionary of Runic Inscriptions of the Younger Futhark, at the university of Nottingham

References