Balle (runemaster)
Encyclopedia
Balle or Red-Balle (Old Norse: Rauð-BalliR) was a runemaster
who was active in the areas of western Uppland
, Västmanland
, and northern Södermanland
of Sweden
during the second half of the 11th century.
runestone style. Balle signed about twenty-four surviving runestones in south-western Uppland and northern Södermanland. He often signed his name in the form of Old Norse poetry
as exemplified on runestone U 729 in Ågersta. There are also an additional twenty runestones that have been attributed to him for stylistic reasons. Balle was noted for the consistency of his use of a dot as a punctuation mark between the words of his runic inscriptions, and often used dotted e-, g-, and y-runes.
catalog lists over twenty inscriptions as being signed by Balle including Sö 92 in Husby Kyrkogård, Sö 203 in Östa, Sö 210 in Klippinge, Sö 214 in Årby, U 647 in Övergran, U 699 in Amnö, U 705 in Öster-Dalby, U 707 in Kungs-Husby, U 721 in Löt, U 726 in Ramby, U 729 in Ågersta, U 740 in Hemsla, U 744 in Gidsmarken, U 750 in Viggby, U 753 in Litslena Prästgård, U 756 in Ullstämma, U 770 in Tjursåker, U 819 in Mysinge, U 829 in Furby, U 873 in Örsunda, U 1161
in Altuna (which was signed by several runemasters), Vs 15 in Lilla Kyringe, and Vs 24
in Hassmyra.
on these two signed runestones, some runologists
have questioned whether Balle and this Red-Balle were one and the same person.
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...
who was active in the areas of western 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...
, Västmanland
Västmanland
' is a historical Swedish province, or landskap, in middle Sweden. It borders Södermanland, Närke, Värmland, Dalarna and Uppland.The name comes from "West men", referring to the people west of Uppland, the core province of early Sweden.- Administration :...
, and northern Södermanland
Södermanland
', sometimes referred to under its Latin form Sudermannia or Sudermania, is a historical province or landskap on the south eastern coast of Sweden. It borders Östergötland, Närke, Västmanland and Uppland. It is also bounded by lake Mälaren and the Baltic sea.In Swedish, the province name is...
of 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....
during the second half of the 11th century.
Work
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 stonemason. During the 11th century, when most runestones were raised, there were a few professional runemasters. Balle was active in the later 11th century and his work is representative of the UrnesUrnes 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...
runestone style. Balle signed about twenty-four surviving runestones in south-western Uppland and northern Södermanland. He often signed his name in the form of Old Norse poetry
Old Norse poetry
Old Norse poetry encompasses a range of verse forms written in Old Norse, during the period from the 8th century to as late as the far end of the 13th century...
as exemplified on runestone U 729 in Ågersta. There are also an additional twenty runestones that have been attributed to him for stylistic reasons. Balle was noted for the consistency of his use of a dot as a punctuation mark between the words of his runic inscriptions, and often used dotted e-, g-, and y-runes.
Signed inscriptions
The RundataRundata
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 lists over twenty inscriptions as being signed by Balle including Sö 92 in Husby Kyrkogård, Sö 203 in Östa, Sö 210 in Klippinge, Sö 214 in Årby, U 647 in Övergran, U 699 in Amnö, U 705 in Öster-Dalby, U 707 in Kungs-Husby, U 721 in Löt, U 726 in Ramby, U 729 in Ågersta, U 740 in Hemsla, U 744 in Gidsmarken, U 750 in Viggby, U 753 in Litslena Prästgård, U 756 in Ullstämma, U 770 in Tjursåker, U 819 in Mysinge, U 829 in Furby, U 873 in Örsunda, U 1161
Altuna Runestone
The Altuna Runestone , listed as U 1161 in the Rundata catalog, is a Viking Age memorial runestone with images from Norse mythology that is located in Altuna, Uppland, Sweden.- Description :...
in Altuna (which was signed by several runemasters), Vs 15 in Lilla Kyringe, and Vs 24
Odendisa Runestone
The Odendisa Runestone , sometimes called the Hassmyra Runestone, is a Viking Age runestone erected at Hassmyra, Västmanland, Sweden, that is a memorial to a woman.-Description:...
in Hassmyra.
Red-Balle
The runestones Vs 15 in Lilla Kyringe and Vs 24 in Hassmyra were signed by a runemaster named Red-Balle. The runes on both runestones show the name as roþbalir. However, due to differences in ornamentation and orthographyOld Norse orthography
The orthography of the Old Norse language was diverse, being written in both Runic and Latin alphabets, with many spelling conventions, variant letterforms, and unique letters and signs. In modern times, scholars established a standardized spelling for the language. When Old Norse names are used in...
on these two signed runestones, some runologists
Runology
Runology is the study of the Runic alphabets, Runic inscriptions and their history. Runology forms a specialized branch of Germanic linguistics.-History:...
have questioned whether Balle and this Red-Balle were one and the same person.