Södermanland Runic Inscription 109
Encyclopedia
Sö 109 is the Rundata
designation for a runic inscription on a Viking Age
memorial
runestone that is located in Gredby, which is near Eskilstuna
, Södermanland County
, Sweden
, which was in the historic province of Södermanland
.
carved within two serpents that surround a Christian cross
. The stone is 3.27 meters in height and composed of granite. The inscription is classified as being carved in runestone style Pr2, which is also known as Ringerike style
.
The runestone was described in 1686 as being part of a bridge at Gredby. Before the historic significance of runestones was recognized, they were often re-used as materials in the construction of churches, bridges, and roads. In 1864 the stone was rediscovered and setup alongside the road, and then moved to its current location in 1931. It stands alongside two of the Ingvar runestones
, Sö 107 and Sö 108.
The runic text states that a couple named Ormarr and Véfríðr and blood relatives raised the stone as a memorial to Þólfr.
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...
designation for a runic inscription 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....
runestone that is located in Gredby, which is near Eskilstuna
Eskilstuna
Eskilstuna is a city and the seat of Eskilstuna Municipality, Södermanland County, Sweden with 60,185 inhabitants in 2005. Eskilstuna has a large Sweden Finn population....
, Södermanland County
Södermanland County
Södermanland County is a county or län on the south east coast of Sweden. It borders the counties of Östergötland, Örebro, Västmanland, Uppsala, Stockholm and to the Baltic sea....
, 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 was in the historic province of 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...
.
Description
This inscription consists of runic 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 within two serpents that surround a Christian cross
Christian cross
The Christian cross, seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, is the best-known religious symbol of Christianity...
. The stone is 3.27 meters in height and composed of granite. The inscription is classified as being carved in runestone style Pr2, which is also known as Ringerike style
Ringerike style
The Ringerike style is a Scandinavian animal style from the late 10th century and the 11th century, which evolved out of the earlier Mammen style. It has received its name from a group of runestones with animal and plant motifs in the Ringerike district north of Oslo. The most common motifs are...
.
The runestone was described in 1686 as being part of a bridge at Gredby. Before the historic significance of runestones was recognized, they were often re-used as materials in the construction of churches, bridges, and roads. In 1864 the stone was rediscovered and setup alongside the road, and then moved to its current location in 1931. It stands alongside two of the Ingvar runestones
Ingvar runestones
The Ingvar Runestones is the name of c. 26 Varangian Runestones that were raised in commemoration of those who died in the Swedish Viking expedition to the Caspian Sea of Ingvar the Far-Travelled....
, Sö 107 and Sö 108.
The runic text states that a couple named Ormarr and Véfríðr and blood relatives raised the stone as a memorial to Þólfr.
Transliteration of the runes into Latin characters
- ormar auk × uifriþ ¤ auk × hulmriþ ¤ auk × kal ¤ auk ¤ þolfr auk ¤ (s)krim(i) ¤ þu ¤ hui ¤ --(s)keni ¤ litu (r)(s)(a) × stin × aftir þolf ×
Transcription into Old Norse
- Ormarr ok Véfríðr ok Holmfríðr ok Káll(?) ok Þólfr ok Skrimi(?) þau hjún(?) [ok] [sy]stkin(?) létu reisa stein eptir Þólf.
Translation in English
- Ormarr and Véfríðr and Holmfríðr and Káll(?) and Þolfr and Skrimi(?), this married couple(?) and siblings(?), they had the stone raised in memory of Þólfr.