Uppland Runic Inscription 678

Last updated
Uppland Runic Inscription 678
U678.jpg
Country Sweden
Region Uppland
City/Village Skokloster
Produced 11th Century (Possibly older)
Runemaster Fot

Text – Native

Old Norse  :

Andvettr ok GullæifR ok "Gunnarr ok Horsi ok "RolæifR letu ræisa stæin at Thordh, fadhur sinn. Fotr hiogg runaR.
Text – English
Andvéttr and Gulleifr and Gunnarr and Haursi and Hródhleifr had the stone raised in memory of Thórdhr, their father. Fótr cut the runes.
Other resources
RunestonesRunic alphabet
RunologyRunestone styles

U 678 is the Rundata catalog number for a Viking Age image stone with a runic inscription located in Skokloster, Uppland, Sweden.

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 database is freely available via the Internet with a client program, called Rundata, for Microsoft Windows and ASCII text files for other operating systems.

Viking Age Period of European history from the 8th to the 11th century dealing with the Scandinavian expansion

The Viking Age is a period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, following the Germanic Iron Age. It is the period of history when Scandinavian Norsemen explored Europe by its seas and rivers for trade, raids, colonization, and conquest. In this period, the Norsemen settled in Norse Greenland, Newfoundland, and present-day Faroe Islands, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Normandy, Scotland, England, Wales, Ireland, Isle of Man, the Netherlands, Germany, Ukraine, Russia, Turkey and Italy.

Uppland Place in Svealand, Sweden

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. On the small uninhabited island of Märket in the Baltic, Uppland has a very short and unusually shaped land border with Åland, an autonomous province of Finland.

Contents

Description

This runestone was found walled inside a church at Skokloster, and has been moved to a location behind the church. One side of the stone has an image of a man on a horse, and the other side has a similar image with a surrounding runic inscription within runic bands. At the top of the second side with the runic text is carved a man's mask above a Christian cross. [1] Other runestones with a similar mask above a cross motif include inscriptions on Sö 86 in Åby, Sö 112 in Kolunda, Sö 367 in Släbro, Nä 34 in Nasta, and U 1034 in Tensta. [1] Other inscriptions with facial masks include DR 62 in Sjelle, DR 81 in Skern, the now-lost DR 286 in Hunnestad, DR 314 in Lund, Vg 106 in Lassegården, Sö 167 in Landshammar, U 508 in Gillberga, U 670 in Rölunda, U 824 in Örsundsbro, and U 1150 in Björklinge, and on the Sjellebro Stone. [1]

The Christian cross, seen as a representation of the instrument of the crucifixion of Jesus, is the best-known symbol of Christianity. It is related to the crucifix and to the more general family of cross symbols, the term cross itself being detached from the original specifically Christian meaning in modern English.

Södermanland Runic Inscription 86

Sö 86 is the Rundata catalog number for a Viking Age memorial runic inscription located in Åby, which is about one kilometer north of Ålberga, Södermanland County, Sweden, and in the historic province of Södermanland. The inscription features a depiction of the hammer of the Norse pagan god Thor named Mjöllnir and a facial mask.

Södermanland Runic Inscription 367

Södermanland Runic Inscription 367 or Sö 367 is the Rundata catalog designation for a Viking Age memorial runestone located in Släbro, which is one kilometer north of Nyköping, Södermanland County, Sweden, which was in the historic province of Södermanland. The inscription has a facial mask and describes two men as being thegns and the owners of Sleðabrú, which today is modern day Släbro.

The inscription is signed by the runemaster Fot, who was active in the mid eleventh century. His signature in the runic text fotr × hiuk × runaR or Fotr hiogg runaR ("Fótr cut the runes") is located on the text bar under the figure on the horse. Other inscriptions signed by him include U 167 in Östra Ryds, U 177 in Stav, U 268 in Harby, U 464 in Edeby, U 605 in Stäket, U 638 in Mansängen, and U 945 in Danmarks. He is also noted for the consistency of his use of the punctuation mark × between the words of the runic inscription, [2] and this mark is used to separate the words in the text on this stone. Due to the unusual imagery of the inscription, assumed to be from an earlier time period, it has been suggested that Fot used earlier carved imagery to add his new runic text to. This runestone is classified as being carved in runestone style RAK. [3] This is the classification for inscriptions with runic text without dragon or serpent heads and where the ends of the runic bands are straight.

Runemaster specialist in making runestones

A runemaster or runecarver is a specialist in making runestones. More than 100 names of runemasters are known from Viking Age Sweden with most of them from 11th century eastern Svealand. Many anonymous runestones have more or less securely been attributed to these runemasters. During the 11th century, when most runestones were raised, there were a few professional runemasters. They and their apprentices were contracted to make runestones and when the work was finished, they sometimes signed the stone with the name of the runemaster. Many of the uncovered runic inscriptions have likely been completed by non-professional runecarvers for the practical purposes of burial rites or record-keeping. Due to the depictions of daily life, many of the nonprofessional runecarvers could have been anything from pirates to soldiers, merchants, or farmers. The layout of Scandinavian towns provided centers where craftspeople could congregate and share trade knowledge. After the spread of Christianity in these regions, and the increase in runic literacy that followed, runes were used for record-keeping and found on things like weapons, ivory, and coins.

Fot runemaster who flourished in mid-11th century Sweden

Fot was a runemaster who flourished in mid-11th century Sweden. He is sometimes known as Foto.

Inscription

A transliteration of the runic inscription into roman letters is:

antuitr × auk × kulaifr × auk × kunar × auk × haursi × auk × rulaifR × litu [×] rai(s)[a] × s(t)[ain × a](t) × þorþ × faþur × sin fotr × hiuk × runaR [3]

Related Research Articles

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Danish Runic Inscription 66 runestone

Danish Runic Inscription 66 or DR 66, also known as the Mask stone, is a granite Viking Age memorial runestone that was discovered in Aarhus, Denmark. The inscription features a facial mask and memorializes a man who died in a battle.

Norra Härene Runestone

The Norra Härene Runestone, designated as Vg 59 by Rundata, is a Viking Age memorial runestone that is located on the grounds of Dagsnäs Castle, which is about seven kilometers south of Skara, Västra Götaland County, Sweden, in the historic province of Västergötland.

Gardarike runestones

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Uppland Runic Inscription 1034 mask stone

Uppland Runic Inscription 1034 or U 1034 is the Rundata catalog number for a runic inscription on a runestone located at the Tensta Church, which is three kilometers northwest of Vattholma, Uppsala County, Sweden, and in the historic province of Uppland, that was carved in the late 11th or early 12th century. While the tradition of carving inscriptions into boulders began in the 4th century and lasted into the 12th century, most runestones date from the late Viking Age.

Uppland Runic Inscription 308

Uppland Runic Inscription 308 or U 308 is the Rundata catalog designation for a memorial runestone that is located in Ekeby, Stockholm County, Sweden, which was in the historic province of Uppland. While the tradition of carving inscriptions into boulders began in the 4th century and lasted into the 12th century, most runestones date from the late Viking Age.

Södermanland Runic Inscription 109

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.

Uppland Runic Inscription 448

This runic inscription, designated as U 448 in the Rundata catalog, is on a Viking Age memorial runestone located in Harg, which is about 4 kilometers north of Märsta, Stockholm County, Sweden, which was in the historic province of Uppland.

Lund 1 Runestone

The Lund 1 Runestone, designated as DR 314 in the Rundata catalog, is a Viking Age memorial runestone originally located on the grounds of the All Saints Church in Lund, Scania, Sweden.

Södermanland Runic Inscription 328

Sö 328 is the Rundata catalog number for a runic inscription on a Viking Age memorial runestone which is located in Tynäs, which is about one kilometer east of Strängnäs, Södermanland County, Sweden, which is in the historic province of Södermanland.

Uppland Runic Inscription 80

Uppland Runic Inscription 80 or U 80 is the Rundata catalog listing for a Viking Age memorial runic inscription that is located in Sundby, which is in Solna Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden, and in the historic province of Uppland.

Östergötland Runic Inscription 224

Östergötland Runic Inscription 224 or Ög 224 is the Rundata catalog number for a Viking Age memorial runestone that is located in Stratomta, which is 9 kilometers east of Linköping, Östergötland, Sweden. The runestone has an inscription on two sides with an image of a ship on the south side.

Västra Strö 2 Runestone

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Uppland Runic Inscription 824 mask stone

Uppland Runic Inscription 824 is the Rundata catalog number for a Viking Age memorial runestone located at Holms, which is about eight kilometers east of Örsundsbro, Uppsala County, Sweden, and in the historic province of Uppland. The inscription features a facial mask and a bind rune in the text.

Södermanland Runic Inscription 292

Sö 292 is the Rundata catalog number for a Viking Age memorial runestone located in Bröta, which is about six kilometers southwest of Väländan, Stockholm County, Sweden, in the historic province of Södermanland.

Västmanland Runic Inscription 17

Västmanland Runic Inscription 17 or Vs 17 is the Rundata designation for a Viking Age memorial runestone with an image of a ship that is located in Råby, which is about two kilometers east of Tortuna, Västmanland County, Sweden, which was in the historic province of Västmanland.

Nasta Runestone

The Nasta Runestone, listed as Nä 34 in the Rundata catalog, is a Viking Age memorial runestone located in Nasta, which is 3 kilometers northwest of Glanshammar, Örebro County, Sweden, which was in the historic province of Närke.

Södermanland Runic Inscription 235

Södermanland Runic Inscription 235 or Sö 235 is the Rundata listing for a Viking Age memorial runestone fragment that is located in Västerby, which is six kilometers southwest of Väländan, Stockholm County, Sweden, and in the historic province of Södermanland.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Bertelsen, Lise Gjedssø (2006). "On Öpir's Pictures". In Stoklund, Marie; Nielsen, Michael Lerche; et al. Runes and Their Secrets: Studies in Runology. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum Press. pp. 46–49. ISBN   87-635-0428-6.
  2. Meijer, Jan (2007). "Punctuation Marks on Viking Age Rune Stones". In Langbroek, Erika. Amsterdamer Beiträge Zur Älteren Germanistik. Rodopi. pp. 81–82. ISBN   978-90-420-2256-0.
  3. 1 2 Project Samnordisk Runtextdatabas Svensk - Rundata entry for U 678.

Coordinates: 59°42′16″N17°37′28″E / 59.7045°N 17.6245°E / 59.7045; 17.6245

Geographic coordinate system Coordinate system

A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are often chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position and two or three of the numbers represent a horizontal position; alternatively, a geographic position may be expressed in a combined three-dimensional Cartesian vector. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation. To specify a location on a plane requires a map projection.