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The runestones are unevenly distributed in Scandinavia: The majority are found in Sweden, estimated at between 1,700 [2] and 2,500 (depending on definition). Denmark has 250 runestones, and Norway has 50. [2] There are also runestones in other areas reached by the Viking expansion, especially in the British Isles. [3]
A vast majority, 94%, are raised in memory of men, but, contrary to common perception, the vast majority of the runestones are raised in memory of people who died at home. The most famous runestones and those that people tend to think of are those that tell of foreign voyages, but they comprise only c. 10% of all runestones, [21] and they were ...
Another runestone, Sö 323, is signed by a Skamhals, but that is believed to be a different person with the same name. The other two sides contain images, with one interpreted as depicting Gunnar playing the harp in the snake pit. Of the names in the inscription, Geirmarr means "spear-steed" [6] and Skammhals is a nickname meaning "small neck". [7]
Two groups of runestones erected in Denmark mention a woman named Thyra, which suggests she was a powerful Viking sovereign who likely played a pivotal role in the birth of the Danish realm.
This statue was very famous and portrayed Theodoric with his shield hanging across his left shoulder, and his lance extended in his right hand. The Mærings is a name for Theodoric's family. [citation needed] According to the old English Deor poem from the 10th century, Theodoric ruled the "castle of the Mærings" (Ravenna) for thirty years ...
The style or design of runestones varied during the Viking Age. The early runestones were simple in design, but towards the end of the runestone era they became increasingly complex and made by travelling runemasters such as Öpir and Visäte. A categorization of the styles was developed by Anne-Sophie Gräslund in the 1990s. [1]
Runestones raised in memory of women (2 C, 13 P) Pages in category "Runestones" The following 12 pages are in this category, out of 12 total.
The runestones that talk of voyages to eastern Europe, the Byzantine Empire and the Middle East are treated separately in the article Varangian runestones and its subarticles. The most notable of the Viking runestones is the Kjula Runestone in Södermanland, Sweden, and it contains a poem in Old Norse in the metre fornyrðislag that refers to ...