Infopanel 13

The writing of the Vikings

Even today, thousands of Scandinavian runic inscriptions on gravestones praise the deeds of the dead and record who inherits them. Although older runic inscriptions are known to exist, most runestones date from the late Viking Age of the 10th and 11th centuries.

Although the runes were given names such as ice, hail, or cattle for reasons of memorability, this says nothing about the deeper meaning of the rune. It was therefore not a magical script, but a very ordinary, widely used one.