All  

Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ

Ancient Origins Tour IRAQ Mobile

runes

Inscription on the Negau helmet B. Source: Peter1936F / CC BY-SA 4.0

Do the Runes on the Negau Helmet B Really Date Back Over 2,000 Years?

The exact origin of the runic alphabet is still an enigma for scholars, who continue in their efforts to deduce when it first appeared. Because of this, every new archaeological excavation that bears...
The 2,000-year-old iron knife, found near Odense on the island of Funen, Denmark, carries the oldest runic inscription known.  Source: Rogvi N Johansen/© Museum Odense

Denmark’s Oldest Runic Inscription Found on the Blade of a 2,000-Year-Old Knife

The discovery of a runic inscription on an almost 2,000-year-old knife sheds light on Denmark's early written language and cultural history – it’s the oldest runic inscription found so far in the...
Detail of one of the Jelling Stones. Source: National Museum Denmark

Carvers of the Jelling Stones Identified by Danish Archaeologists

A new study has solved an intriguing historical mystery involving treasured Danish artifacts that are now more than 1,000 years old, having been made during Scandinavia’s Viking Age in the 10th...
Representational image of a magical Viking rune or Viking Code. Source: Artur / Adobe Stock

Unlocking the Cryptic Viking Code Using Runic Writing and Ancient DNA

Runic script is an alphabetic system based on a non-alphabetical order row. This means that it has letters, like in many languages, but the letters are not arranged in a standard alphabetical order...
The Narragansett Runestone. Source: Alchetron.

Gone Without a Trace: The Curious Case of the Narragansett Runestone (Video)

The Narragansett Runestone , also known as the Quidnessett Rock, has captivated the imagination of many due to its mysterious inscriptions and alleged connections to the Knights Templar. The stone,...
A gold piece from the Vindelev hoard. Source: Oleryhlolsson / CC by SA 4.0.

The Ancient Golden Treasure Rewriting Danish History (Video)

A remarkable chance discovery in the Danish village of Vindelev is revolutionizing our understanding of early Norse history. Two old school friends, armed only with a metal detector, stumbled across...
The runestone discovered in Randers, Denmark is likely older than the Jelling stones. Source: Lene Brandt/DR

Giant Runestone Discovered Under Kitchen Floor in Denmark

A routine home renovation just outside the city of Randers in Denmark, turned into something out of a fantasy-treasure novel. A young couple stumbled upon a sizable runestone just as they were...
The world’s oldest runestone, just found in Svingerud, Norway. Source: Alexis Pantos/KHM, UiO

Earliest Runic Inscription Discovered in Norway

‘The dream stone of all runologists’ that can potentially provide clues to the origins of Western writing has been discovered in Norway. A runestone with inscriptions dating back to the earliest...
Viking runes have been an object of fascination for centuries, but we can decode their meaning.         Source: La Cassette Bleue / Adobe Stock

The Mystery, Magic and Meaning of Viking Runes

Norse civilization has provided an enormous amount of culture to the world, from its rich history to its vast mythology. One captivating aspect of Norse culture is often overlooked: runes. Most...
The Runamo Runes: The Mysterious Runic Inscription that Never Was!

The Runamo Runes: The Mysterious Runic Inscription that Never Was!

Before the invention of paper, humanity often inscribed words, symbols, and images onto the living stone of the surrounding landscape. These images, often commemorating significant cultural events or...
The Nordic Helm of Awe is a Viking or Norse magical spell or rune that could be used for good or evil, but it wasn’t an actual battle helmet. Source: Fotokvadrat / Adobe Stock

What is the Helm of Awe? Runes, Symbols, and Viking Magic!

Every culture contains a plethora of images, animals, foods, etc. that are symbolic of their values. Symbols are an important, meaningful aspect of culture that can teach historians, archaeologists,...
Archaeologist Ingeborg Hornkjøl unearthing an ancient stick with runic writing. Source: Tone Bergland / NIKU

Rare Runic Writing Unearthed in Norway

In December 2021, the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) announced that rare runic writing has been discovered in Oslo carved into the faces of a stick and a large animal bone...
The futhark on the Vadstena bracteate.

Unearthing Ancient Magic in The Runes –Messages with Hidden Symbols and Powerful Numbers

The etymology of the word “rune” means: “to carve, or to cut.” In Low German the word is “raunen.” As the runes were cut and carved into wood, metal or stone, the word “rune” was analogous to the...
Of Runes And Sacrifice: The Initiation Ritual Of Odin in Norse Myth

Of Runes And Sacrifice: The Initiation Ritual Of Odin in Norse Myth

The total of the poetic, mythological and sapiential heritage of the ancient and early medieval Scandinavian tradition is contained in the texts canonically collected under the title of Edda . Within...
The Northern Mysteries Current: Futhark and Mystery Schools of the Viking Age

The Northern Mysteries Current: Futhark and Mystery Schools of the Viking Age

The existence of mystery schools in the Viking Age (800-1200 CE) is deduced from myth and folklore. The poems of the Edda display the structure and content of cultic texts used within the framework...
The Viking runestone was discovered by a farmer in southern Sweden when plowing his field. 	Source: Ingemar Lundgren / Västervik Museum

Runestone Discovered in Sweden Provides Window Into Viking Past

While plowing a field on his family farm in Småland, southern Sweden , Lennart Larsson came across a large stone. Larsson put the stone, which is 6 feet high (2 m) and 3 feet wide (1 m), to one side...
Left; Danigala Chithra Lena, Sri Lanka Petroglyphs - Linear chamber entrance and left wall representing sections of the Petroglyphs, includes anthropomorphic figures, Image © EASL | CCF-Polonnaruwa. Right; Left side wall at the middle of linear chamber representing anthropomorphic figures like human and bind code of mastermind.  Image © EASL | CCF-Polonnaruwa

Exo-Geologist Reveals Neolithic Petroglyphs In “Alien Mountain” Caves

A highly-driven and groundbreaking Astrobiologist & Exo-Geologist in Sri Lanka has written about “unique Neolithic petroglyphs” that match nothing else ever discovered on Sri Lanka, carved on...
Close up of the Viking runestone (‘the Rök Stone’) from the 9th century, features the longest known runic inscription and is considered the first piece of Swedish literature.        Source: rolf_52 / Adobe stock

Viking Runestone Uncovers Climate Fears That Fed Ragnarök Myth

Much of the modern world is very worried about climate change and it appears that Vikings were also very concerned about changes to the climate. Researchers now argue that one of the world’s most...
Red runes carved from wood on the ground. There are 24 runes in the Elder Futhark.

Futhark: Mysterious Ancient Runic Alphabet of Northern Europe

Runes are the characters of the earliest written alphabet used by the Germanic peoples of Europe called Futhark. The runic alphabet was used within Germanic languages but primarily in Nordic...
The brooch found at Værløse Airfield has been inscribed with Norse runes and the ancient sun symbol, the swastika, which the Nazis used to further their horrifying ideology.

Unearthed Brooch Tells of the Nazis’ Abuse of Ancient Norse Runes to Spread Their Dark Ideology

During the Second World War a brooch inscribed with ancient Norse runes (letters) was discovered in a field at Værløse Airfield in Denmark telling a sinister story of the Nazi’s efforts to abuse...
Gärde Church fresco

Magnificent Gärde Church of Gotland was Built on the Site of Ancient Viking Graveyard

A traveler called Linee wrote in 1741 that “Gärde gives us nothing special at hand..." Coming from the north, he knew nothing about Gärde Church, one of Gotland's oldest stone churches standing next...
 Bone found in Namsky district with runic writing.

Boy, 11, Finds 1,000-Year-Old-Message Written in Runes on Pendant Made of Mammoth Bone

A fifth-grade student has discovered a piece of ‘jewellery’ decorated with ancient Turkic runic inscriptions. Pavel Yakovlev made the ‘great scientific discovery’ near his village in Yakutia. The...
The comb was discovered in Ribe, West Denmark.

Objects with Viking Rune Inscriptions Unearthed in Denmark’s Oldest Town

Ancient objects with rare Viking rune inscriptions have been discovered in Denmark. Experts suggest that the runic inscriptions could possibly shed new light on a very important period of the early...
Runic inscription found in Bergen.

Erotic Medieval Runic Inscriptions Found in Bergen

By ThorNews A runic inscription found in Bergen is quite long and the author must have had a lot of “erotic energy” when he carved these runes into the 33 centimeter-long (13 inches) wooden stick: “I...

Pages