The Einang stone (''Einangsteinen'') is a

runestone A runestone is typically a raised stone with a runic inscription, but the term can also be applied to inscriptions on boulders and on bedrock. The tradition began in the 4th century and lasted into the 12th century, but most of the runestones d ...

located east of the

Einang Sound The Einang Sound ( no, Einangsundet) is a small sound in the middle of Slidre Fjord in Oppland county, Norway, about wide. It is crossed by Norwegian County Road 261 via the Einang Sound Bridge ( no, Einangsundet bru), which was built in 1963. ...

near

Fagernes is a town in Nord-Aurdal Municipality in Innlandet county, Norway. The town is the administrative centre of the municipality as well as the largest urban/commercial centre for the Valdres region. It is located just northwest of the village of ...

, in

Oppland Oppland is a former county in Norway which existed from 1781 until its dissolution on 1 January 2020. The old Oppland county bordered the counties of Trøndelag, Møre og Romsdal, Sogn og Fjordane, Buskerud, Akershus, Oslo and Hedmark. The c ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the ...

, notable for the age of its

runic inscription A runic inscription is an inscription made in one of the various runic alphabets. They generally contained practical information or memorials instead of magic or mythic stories. The body of runic inscriptions falls into the three categories of E ...

. The Einang runestone is located within the extensive Gardberg site. It is placed on a grave mound on a ridge overlooking the

Valdres Valdres () is a traditional district in central, southern Norway, situated between the districts of Gudbrandsdalen and Hallingdal. The region of Valdres consists of the six municipalities of Nord-Aurdal, Sør-Aurdal, Øystre Slidre, Vestre Sl ...

valley. There are several other grave mounds nearby. Today the runestone is protected by glass walls and a roof.

Description

The Einang stone bears an Elder Futhark inscription in

Proto-Norse Proto-Norse (also called Ancient Nordic, Ancient Scandinavian, Ancient Norse, Primitive Norse, Proto-Nordic, Proto-Scandinavian and Proto-North Germanic) was an Indo-European language spoken in Scandinavia that is thought to have evolved as a ...

that has been dated to the 4th century. It is the oldest runestone still standing at its original location, and it may be the earliest inscription to mention the word ''runo'' '

rune Runes are the letters in a set of related alphabets known as runic alphabets native to the Germanic peoples. Runes were used to write various Germanic languages (with some exceptions) before they adopted the Latin alphabet, and for specialised ...

'. Here the word appears in the singular. Additionally, the verb used in the inscription for the act of inscribing is ''faihido'', which literally means 'painted'. This may mean that the inscription was originally highlighted with paint.

Inscription

The generally accepted reading of the inscription was proposed by

Erik Moltke Erik Moltke (4 April 1901 – 19 October 1984) was a Danish runologist, writer, and editor. Through his leadership, the Runologist Section of the National Museum of Denmark became a world centre for the scientific study of runology Runology is ...

in 1938. He conjectured that there had been four runes in the original inscription, before the first rune which is visible today. The reading is: : Which translates as: :''(I, Go)dguest painted/wrote this runic inscription.'' As the stone is placed on a grave mound, it is natural to interpret it as a tombstone. Why the inscription does not name the buried person, but only the carver of the runes, remains an open question.

References

{{Coord, 61, 5, 28.55, N, 9, 0, 15.06, E, display=title Proto-Norse language Runestones in Norway Elder Futhark inscriptions 4th-century inscriptions

Description

Inscription

See also

References