Unna´s stone

One of two runestones which originally stood at the boundary of what later became known as Torsätra herrgård but which during the Viking Age was called Husa. Both stones were moved to the Swedish History Museum in 1967. The ornamentation, the appearance of the runes and the inscription indicate that the stone was engraved by Visäte, sometime during the latter decades of the 11th century. The inscription runs: 'Unna had this stone raised in memory of his son Östen, who died wearing a christening gown. God preserve his soul." The text begins on the right side of the stone and runs downwards and inside the head of the runic animal (or serpent) where it ends with the name Östen, then continuing on the other side from the rear end of the animal and upwards. The Old Norse version of the inscription runs: 'Unna let ræisa þennsa stæin æftiʀ sun sinn Øystæin, sum do i hvitavaðum. Gud hialpi salu hans.' The word hvitavaðum is interesting as it means 'white length of textile', i.e. christening gown. If the text is right this means that Östen was baptised, if not on the day he died, then only a short time before his death. Christening gowns are only worn during the actual baptism and during the following week. We do not know how old Östen was when he died. U 613, Torsätra, Västra Ryd Parish, Uppland.

Image rights: Bonnevier, Helena/SHM (Creative Commons Erkännande 4.0 Internationell Publik Licens)
Object number: 44677_HST


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