Sæbø sword
Encyclopedia
The Sæbø sword is an early 9th-century Viking sword
, found in a barrow at Sæbø, Vik
, Sogn
, Norway in 1825. It is now held at the Bergen Museum
in Bergen
, Norway
. The sword has an enigmatic inscription on its blade, which has been identified as a runic inscription incorporating a swastika symbol
. If so, this sword is a very rare example of a weapon with a runic inscription on its blade.
symbol in the middle. According to Stephens the inscription reads oh卍muþ from right to left. He interpreted the swastika as being used in rebus
-writing to represent the syllable þur for the god Thor
, and thus expanded the reading to oh Þurmuþ meaning "Owns [me], Thurmuth". This reading was inspired by the idea that the swastika was used as a symbol of Thor (more precisely, of Thor's hammer
) in Viking Age
Norse paganism
. It was the subject of scholarly discussion at the International Congress of Anthropology and Prehistoric Archæology at Budapest in 1876, where the prevalent opinion was that the swastika stood for "blessing" or "good luck".
In 1889, in a review of a book by A. L. Lorange, Stephens noted that the sword had been treated with acid whilst at the Danish Museum, with the result that the sword and its inscription were severely damaged, and consequently the inscription shown in a colour plate in Lorange's book was undecipherable.
Viking sword
The Viking sword is a form of spatha, evolving out of the Migration Period sword in the 8th century, and evolving into the classical knightly sword in the 11th century with the emergence of larger crossguards...
, found in a barrow at Sæbø, Vik
Vik
Vik is a municipality in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, Norway. It is located in the traditional district of Sogn. The administrative center of Vik is the village of Vikøyri.-General information:...
, Sogn
Sogn
Sogn is a traditional district in Western Norway . It is located in the county of Sogn og Fjordane, surrounding the Sognefjord. Sogn consists of the municipalities of Aurland, Balestrand, Hyllestad, Høyanger, Gulen, Leikanger, Luster, Lærdal, Sogndal, Solund, Vik, and Årdal. The district covers ...
, Norway in 1825. It is now held at the Bergen Museum
Bergen Museum
The Bergen Museum is a university museum in Bergen, Norway. Founded in 1825 with the intent of building large collections in the fields of culture and natural history, it became the grounds for most of the academic activity in the city, a tradition which has prevailed since the museum became part...
in Bergen
Bergen
Bergen is the second largest city in Norway with a population of as of , . Bergen is the administrative centre of Hordaland county. Greater Bergen or Bergen Metropolitan Area as defined by Statistics Norway, has a population of as of , ....
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. The sword has an enigmatic inscription on its blade, which has been identified as a runic inscription incorporating a swastika symbol
Swastika (Germanic Iron Age)
The swastika design is known from artefacts of various cultures since the Neolithic, and it recurs with some frequency on artefacts dated to the Germanic Iron Age, i.e...
. If so, this sword is a very rare example of a weapon with a runic inscription on its blade.
Description
The sword itself is categorized as 'Type C' by Pedersen (1919), who notes that it is unique in showing remnants of a metal thread at the broadsides of the upper hilt, compared to other specimens of the type which show horizontal ridges or protruding edges, or less commonly inlaid forged stripes or protruding moldings that seem to be imitations of twisted or smooth thread. It is described as an imitation of a foreign [continental] sword inscription because of the lack of parallels in native tradition. There is an inscription realised in iron inlay along the center of the blade, close to the hilt.Inscription
The sword was described in 1867 by George Stephens, an English archaeologist and philologist who specialised in the runic inscriptions of Scandinavia, in his book Handbook of the Old-Northern Runic Monuments of Scandinavia and England. In this work he showed a drawing of the sword with a very clear inscription comprising five runes or rune-like letters with a swastikaSwastika
The swastika is an equilateral cross with its arms bent at right angles, in either right-facing form in counter clock motion or its mirrored left-facing form in clock motion. Earliest archaeological evidence of swastika-shaped ornaments dates back to the Indus Valley Civilization of Ancient...
symbol in the middle. According to Stephens the inscription reads oh卍muþ from right to left. He interpreted the swastika as being used in rebus
Rebus
A rebus is an allusional device that uses pictures to represent words or parts of words. It was a favourite form of heraldic expression used in the Middle Ages to denote surnames, for example in its basic form 3 salmon fish to denote the name "Salmon"...
-writing to represent the syllable þur for the god Thor
Thor
In Norse mythology, Thor is a hammer-wielding god associated with thunder, lightning, storms, oak trees, strength, the protection of mankind, and also hallowing, healing, and fertility...
, and thus expanded the reading to oh Þurmuþ meaning "Owns [me], Thurmuth". This reading was inspired by the idea that the swastika was used as a symbol of Thor (more precisely, of Thor's hammer
Thor's Hammer
Thor's Hammer may refer to:* Mjölnir, the hammer wielded by Thor in Norse mythology*Thor's Hammer , a garage rock band from Iceland*Thorr's Hammer, a death/doom band from Ballard, Washington...
) in 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,...
Norse paganism
Norse paganism
Norse paganism is the religious traditions of the Norsemen, a Germanic people living in the Nordic countries. Norse paganism is therefore a subset of Germanic paganism, which was practiced in the lands inhabited by the Germanic tribes across most of Northern and Central Europe in the Viking Age...
. It was the subject of scholarly discussion at the International Congress of Anthropology and Prehistoric Archæology at Budapest in 1876, where the prevalent opinion was that the swastika stood for "blessing" or "good luck".
In 1889, in a review of a book by A. L. Lorange, Stephens noted that the sword had been treated with acid whilst at the Danish Museum, with the result that the sword and its inscription were severely damaged, and consequently the inscription shown in a colour plate in Lorange's book was undecipherable.
See also
- Seax of BeagnothSeax of BeagnothThe Seax of Beagnoth is a 9th century Anglo-Saxon seax . It was found in the River Thames in 1857, and is now at the British Museum in London. It is a prestige weapon, decorated with elaborate patterns of inlaid copper, bronze and silver wire...
, an Anglo-SaxonAnglo-SaxonAnglo-Saxon may refer to:* Anglo-Saxons, a group that invaded Britain** Old English, their language** Anglo-Saxon England, their history, one of various ships* White Anglo-Saxon Protestant, an ethnicity* Anglo-Saxon economy, modern macroeconomic term...
seaxSeaxSeax in Old English means knife or cutting tool. The name of the roofer's tool, the zax, is a development from this word...
with a runic inscription on its blade - Swastika (Germanic Iron Age)Swastika (Germanic Iron Age)The swastika design is known from artefacts of various cultures since the Neolithic, and it recurs with some frequency on artefacts dated to the Germanic Iron Age, i.e...