Vestermarie rune stones

Vestermarie 2

The Vestermarie rune stones are (one lies) in the Vestermarie cemetery on the Danish island of Bornholm in the Baltic Sea . South-west of the church tower is a field with six rune stones (Bh 38 to Bh 43) that were found in the 19th century on farms near or when the old church was demolished. All six stones belong to the group of late Bornholm stones from the transition period between the Viking Age (800 to 1050 AD) and the high Middle Ages (1075 to 1125).

Vestermarie 1

Vestermarie 1 (also called Vester Marie-stenen IV - DK Bh 38 or DR 383) was found in 1819 as a step in front of a farm in the municipality. In 1851 it was moved to the armory of Vestermarie kirke together with Vestermarie 2 (Bh 39) . Ludvig Wimmer (1839–1920) had the stone drawn in 1879. At this point the top right corner was not missing. In 1880 the medieval church was demolished. The rune stone was also damaged, because in 1893, when Wimmer examined the stone, the upper right corner was missing.

A piece of the labeling area on the left is missing. Apart from the upper right corner, the lower corners of the stone, which was restored between 1986 and 1990, are missing.

The undecorated rune stone made of sandstone is about 1.67 m high, 86 cm wide and 11 cm thick. The garbled text reads: … brother, you erected this monument… and a memory of Áskell, her brother. God help ...

Vestermarie rune stones
Vestermarie 1
Vestermarie 4
Vestermarie 3
Vestermarie 5
Vestermarie 6

The rune height is 7.2 to 11 cm. Single and colons were used as word separators. The contoured lettering is in two bands and begins in the lower left of the outer band.

Vestermarie 2

Vestermarie 2 (also DK Bh 39 or DR 384) was found in the municipality in 1847. In 1851 it was moved together with Vestermarie 1 (Bh 38) to the armory of Vestermarie kirke.

The writing surface shows slight weathering, the reverse side shows slight cracks.

The unadorned rune stone made of sandstone is about 1.9 m high, 79 cm wide and 22 cm thick.

The text reads: Thorsteinn and Sveinn erected the stone in memory of Alfvin, their father, and in memory of Thorlakr, their brother. May God and Mother of God help their souls.

The rune height is 9.0 to 16 cm. Crosses and dots were used as word separators. The contoured lettering is in a spiral-shaped band that ends in the middle and begins at the bottom right.

Vestermarie 3

Vestermarie 3 (also DK Bh 40 or DR 385) was found in 1875 as a clapper bridge over a small stream in Højlyngen near Almindingen and Enesbjerg. In 1876 the stone was moved to the Vestermarie church cemetery.

A piece of the upper side of the stone, which was restored between 1986 and 1990, is missing.

The undecorated rune stone made of sandstone is about 1.07 m high, 80 cm wide and 11.5 cm thick.

The garbled text reads: Gillingr… raised his brother. May God help his soul. The name Gilling is known as a mythical name in the northwest, but otherwise unknown.

The rune height is 8.2 to 12.5 cm. Colons were used as word separators. The contoured lettering is in a spiral band that ends in the middle and begins at the bottom left.

Vestermarie 4

Vestermarie 4 (also called Vester Marie-stenen I - DK Bh 41 or DR 386) was found in good condition in 1883 in connection with an excavation at the broken Romanesque Vestermarie church. The stone was with the inscription facing down. The runes were not discovered until the stone was smashed into many pieces. Some parts were not discovered until years later. Six parts were put together while the seventh was assigned to another stone. However, L. Wimmer established the connection in 1895. The loose piece then disappeared for some time, but was found again in 1931.

The rune stone, restored between 1986 and 1990, consists of seven fragments lying on the ground. The state of preservation is bad.

The undecorated rune stone was about 1.3 m high, 1.3 m wide and 26 cm thick. The garbled text reads: … Sveinn… and Tól and Véfridr, they are under… stone .

The rune height is 7.5 to 11.8 cm. Dots were used as word separators. The contoured lettering is in a band.

Vestermarie 5

Vestermarie 5 (also DK Bh 42 or DR 387) was found in 1884 under the south wall of the church.

The well-preserved ornate granite rune stone is about 2.1 m high, 59 cm wide and 11 cm thick.

The text reads: Asvalde built this stone after his brother Alver. The “good” “boy” was shamefully killed and Skoge betrayed the innocent . Runic inscriptions dealing with fraud are a rare but well-known genre (see Svenstrup-Stein; NJy 75).

The rune height is 7.2 to 9.5 cm. Colons were used as word separators. The inscription is in a snake band, which is partially accompanied by an inner band, and begins at the bottom of the snake's head.

Vestermarie 6

Vestermarie 6 (also called Vestermarie-stenen 5; DK Bh 43 or DR 388) was found in a farmhouse in Vestergård near the cemetery in 1888. The stone was auctioned off in the cemetery in the 1820s.

The rune stone, restored between 1986 and 1990, was previously poorly preserved, partly due to earlier repairs. The unadorned rune stone made of sandstone is about 1.57 m high, 79 cm wide and 27 cm thick. The text is garbled.

The rune height is 8.5 to 11.0 cm. Dots were used as word separators. The inscription is in a snake band, which is partially accompanied by an inner band, and begins at the bottom of the snake's head.

Nearby

In the vicinity of Vestermarie are the cemetery at Galgebakken and the row of stones at Store Bjergegårdsbakken.

Row of stones from Store Bjergegårdsbakken

literature

Leif Vognsen. Runest Danmarks. Runesten på Bornholm - bevaringarbejdet 1986–1990. Pp. 40-41. Copenhagen 1992

Web links

Commons : Vestermarie rune stones - Collection of images, videos and audio files

55.105802 14.824776Coordinates: 55 ° 6 ′ 20.9 ″ N , 14 ° 49 ′ 29.2 ″ E