The Torsätra runestone, cataloged by Rundata

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...

 as runic inscription U 614, is 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 originally located in Torsätra, which is approximately 8 kilometers northeast of Bro

Bro, Sweden

Bro is a locality situated in Upplands-Bro Municipality, Stockholm County, Sweden with 6,359 inhabitants in 2005.It is situated 10 km north-west of the municipal seat Kungsängen. Since 2000 Bro has a station on the Stockholm commuter rail network....

, Stockholm County

Stockholm County

Stockholm County is a county or län on the Baltic sea coast of Sweden. It borders Uppsala County and Södermanland County. It also borders Mälaren and the Baltic Sea. The city of Stockholm is the capital of Sweden. Stockholm County is divided by the historic provinces of Uppland and Södermanland...

, 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 is in the historic province of Uppland

Uppland

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...

.

Description

The Torsätra runestone was raised in memory of one of the Swedish king's tribute collectors who fell ill and died during a trip to Gotland

Gotland

Gotland is a county, province, municipality and diocese of Sweden; it is Sweden's largest island and the largest island in the Baltic Sea. At 3,140 square kilometers in area, the region makes up less than one percent of Sweden's total land area...

. The granite stone is 1.45 meters in height and was originally located near runestone U 613 in Torsätra. The stone was moved from its original location in 2005 to allow construction on a military training area, and is currently in the Swedish Museum of National Antiquities

Swedish Museum of National Antiquities

Swedish Museum of National Antiquities is a museum located in Stockholm, Sweden that covers Swedish cultural history and art from the Stone Age to the 16th century...

 in Stockholm

Stockholm

Stockholm is the capital and the largest city of Sweden and constitutes the most populated urban area in Scandinavia. Stockholm is the most populous city in Sweden, with a population of 851,155 in the municipality , 1.37 million in the urban area , and around 2.1 million in the metropolitan area...

. It is considered to be a good example of runestone style

Runestone styles

The runestone styles 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....

 Pr3, which is also known as the Urnes style

Urnes style

The Urnes style was the last phase of Scandinavian animal art during the second half of the 11th century and in the early 12th century. The preceding phases of Scandinavia's Viking Age animal ornamentation are usually categorized as Oseberg style, Borre style, Jelling style, Mammen style and...

. This runestone style is characterized by slim and stylized animals that are interwoven into tight patterns. The animal heads are typically seen in profile with slender almond-shaped eyes and upwardly curled appendages on the noses and the necks.

The inscription is unsigned but, along with U 613, has been attributed to the runemaster

Runemaster

A runemaster or runecarver is a specialist in making runestones.Most early medieval Scandinavians were probably literate in runes, and most people probably carved messages on pieces of bone and wood. However, it was difficult to make runestones, and in order to master it one also needed to be a...

 Visäte

Visäte

Visäte was a runemaster who was active during the last half of the eleventh century in southern Uppland, Sweden.-Work:...

, who was active in the last half of the eleventh century. This attribution dates the inscription from about 1060 to 1070. Eight surviving runestones that are signed by Visäte include U 74 in Husby, U 208 in Råcksta, U 236 in Lindö, U 337

Granby Runestone

The Granby Runestone , designated as U 337 under the Rundata catalog, is the longest Viking Age runic inscription located in Uppland, Sweden.-Description:...

 in Granby, U 454 in Kumla, U 669 in Kålsta, U 862 in Säva, and U Fv1946;258

Uppland Runic Inscription Fv1946;258

This runic inscription, designated as U Fv1946;258 in the Rundata catalog, is on a Viking Age memorial to two fathers that is located in Fällbro, which is about 5 kilometers northwest of Täby, Stockholm County, Sweden, which is in the historic province of Uppland.-Description:This inscription was...

 in Fällbro, and over twenty others have been attributed to this runemaster based on stylistic analysis. Although U 613 and U 614 have somewhat different designs, with U 614 having no cross, Visäte is known to have varied his composition when a second runestone was raised near another of his. Another pair of his runestones with differing designs are U 293 and U Fv1972;172 at Lilla Vilunda, with U 293 having a design similar to U 613 and the other having a quite different design with one intertwined serpent that is above a runic band that cuts across the bottom of the inscription and no cross.
The runic text states that the stone was raised by two brothers in memory of their brother, who was named either Húsbjôrn or Ásbjôrn, who fell ill and died while abroad in Gotland. The inscription has the runes kialt * toku * a kutlanti * or gjald tóku á Gotlandi ("took payment on Gotland") carved outside of the serpent. Gjald is a term used to refer to payments taken in England on runestones Sö 166 in Grinda, U 194 in Väsby, U 241 in Lingsberg, U 344 in Yttergärde, and Vg 119

Sparlösa Runestone

The Sparlösa Runestone, listed as Vg 119 in the Rundata catalog, is located in Västergötland and is the second most famous Swedish runestone after the Rök Runestone.-Description:...

 in Sparlösa (where the context is unclear), and from this U 614 is cited as evidence that a Swedish king collected tribute or taxes from Gotland. Other runestones which mention Gotland include Sö 174 in Aspö, the now-lost U 414 in Norrsunda, U 527 in Frötuna, DR 220

Sønder Kirkeby Runestone

The Sønder Kirkeby Runestone, listed as runic inscription DR 220 in the Rundata catalog, is a Viking Age memorial runestone that was discovered in Sønder Kirkeby, which is located about 5 kilometers east of Nykøbing Falster, Denmark.-Description:...

 in Sønder Kirkeby, DR 259 in Fuglie, possibly Sö 47 in Vålsta, where the text has been damaged, and with U 375 in Vidbo referring to a location on Gotland. U 527, similar to U 614, states that the deceased died from an illness while on Gotland. The runes on U 614 that indicate that "he was sick," hnusiok, follows the rule that double consonants are represented with only a single consonant, even if one of the two consonants are at the end of one word and the second is at the beginning of the next word. The transliteration

Runic transliteration and transcription

Runic transliteration and transcription are part of analysing a runic inscription which involves transliteration of the runes into Latin letters, transcription into a normalized spelling in the language of the inscription, and translation of the inscription into a modern language...

 of the runic text for these words, hn us| |siok, shows word divisions and a separate s-rune

Sowilo

Sól or Sunna is the Sun personified in Germanic mythology. One of the two Old High German Merseburg Incantations, written in the 9th or 10th century CE, attests that Sunna is the sister of Sinthgunt...

 for each of the two words.

Transliteration of the runes into Latin characters

* skuli * auk * folki * lata * reisa * þinsa * stein * iftR * broþur * sin * husbiorn * hn us| |siok * uti * þa þiR * kialt * toku * a kutlanti *

Transcription into Old Norse

Skuli ok Folki lata ræisa þennsa stæin æftiR broður sinn Husbiorn/Asbiorn. Hann vas siukR uti, þa þæiR giald toku a Gutlandi.

Translation in English

Skúli and Folki have raised this stone in memory of their brother Húsbjôrn/Ásbjôrn. He was sick abroad when they took payment on Gotland.

External links

• Photograph of stone in 1990 - Swedish National Heritage Board