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M E S E H OW E :
ILLUSTRATIONS OF THE RUNIC LITERATURE OF
SCANDINAVIA.
ME SE I OW E
ILLUSTRATIONS OFTHE RUNIC LITERATURE OF
SCANDINAVIA,
TRANSLATIONS IN DANISH AND ENGLISH OFTHE
INSCRIPTIONS IN MESEHOWE,
V I S ITS OF THE NORTHERN SOVEREIGNS T O ORKNEY ,
NOTES, VOCABULARY'
, ETC.
J. M . MITCH E LL,
"BLOW 0, TH E RO Y AL 80011 “ 0! NORTH !“ ARTIQUABI I S OF “ m u s t ;JO INT-81 081 1 1 3! FOB
FORE IGN “W IN D I NG! 80011 1 7 or ANTIQUABIRS 0, “ LAND, E TC.
E D INBURGH
R GRANT AND S O N , 54 PRINCE S S TRE E T.
H D O O O LX I I I .
CO NT E N T S.
PAGE
PREFACE ,
ON TH E RUNIC LITERATURE OF SCANDINAV IA,
O N TH E M E S E H OW E INSCRIPTIONS,
DE SCRIPTION O F M ES E H OW E ,
EXPEDITIONS O F NORTH E RN SOV ERE IGNS TO ORKNE Y
TRANSLATION O F TH E M E S E H OW E INSCRIPTIONS,
NOTE S,
V OCABULARY OF DOUBTFUL AND DIFFICULT W ORDS,
P RE FAC E.
W E owe the discovery of the interesting Runic inscriptionsin the mound called M esehowe, to the great zeal for archaeological science evinced by James Farrer, E sq ., M .P ., who (byperm ission of Mr Balfour of Balfour and Trenaby, the pro
prietor of the estate in which it is situated),personally directedsuch excavations as were necessary to obtain access to theinterior ; and in the week beginning on Monday, 8th July1861, the centre was so far cleared out, in presence of JosephRobertson, E sq ., one of the vice- presidents, and John Stuart,E sq ., one of the secretaries of the Society of Antiquaries of
Scotland, and other gentlemen, as to give some idea of thevalue of the rich and remarkable display of the first ,
Scandi
navian Runic inscriptions discovered in Orkney.
Mr Farrer was not satisfied with having merely made thediscovery at considerable trouble, accurate drawings and
ground- plans of the mound, were made by Mr Gibb of
Aberdeen. The inscriptions were carefully copied by the ablearchaeologist,Mr George Petrie of Kirkwall, a gentleman whodeserves great credit for the zeal and perseverance he has
displayed in collecting antiquarian materials in that quarter.Casts were also taken of the inscriptions, by Mr Henry
B
viii PRE FACE .
Laing, Elder Street, Edinburgh,who went to Orkney for thispurpose, at the request of Mr Farrer.The inscriptions and casts were compared on the spot,andthereafter lithographs of the inscriptions were collated,with
the casts by Mr Stuart, who kindly undertook, and ablyperformed this laborious task.
To account for the delay in the publication of my translations, it is right that I should state that, on the 28th September,Mr Farrer wrote to me : The Runes will be comparedwith the casts in the course of a few days, and I then intendto send a few copies to Denm ark and Sweden for interpretation. I Shall send one to an English Runic scholar, and
will order one to be forwarded to you as representing Scot
land ;but I must ask you to adhere to your proposal to comm unicate to me only your translation of the Runes, andrefrain from giving any report of them until you have my
authority to do so. I am most anxious that the Danish andNorwegian scholars Should be placed upon equal terms, andtherefore the copies will be sent to all by the same pos
In November following, M r Farrer was SO kind as to senda copy of the inscriptions to me, as the Secretary for ForeignCorrespondence of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland,attending more particularly to Northern Archaeology and
Philology,having had opportunities of endeavouring to qualifymyself during a residence, as well as several excursions, inScandinavia. The high opinion I then formed of the kindness,and the social and intellectual superiority,of the inhabitants,induced me to learn to speak the northern languages,whichenabled me to visit and copy on the spot many of the Runic
monuments and inscriptions, which so far accounts forventuring to give my versions of the translations of the most
PRE FACE . ix
remarkable and interesting collection of Runic inscriptionshitherto discovered.
My translations of the inscriptions I sent to Mr Farrer,in the beginning of January following,and in the Gentlem an
’
s
M agazine forFebruary,by letter,dated 2oth January,he says
I have now received from Professor Stephens of Copenhagen, a very full and elaborate translation of the Runic
inscriptions in the ancient buildings of M esehowe. I have,in addition,a careful translation from Mr Mitchell,the BelgianConsul at Edinburgh,
”
&c.
In the course of a few weeks more, the other translationshaving reached him ,MrFarrer
’
s splendid work was prepared,and published in the sum m er of last year, containing anaccurate account of M esehowe by him self, and the translations of the Runes by the three Scandinavian literati.Although I had obtained full authority from Mr Farrer,
I considered it my duty as an office- bearer, not topublish my translations until I had read them before theSociety of Antiquaries of Scotland, which only could takeplace in the first Open night of our Winter Session. I hopethese circumstances will sufficiently account for part of thedelay in their publication.
I am now in a position to lay these translations before thepublic,and I have been requested to let the work be offeredfor sale, at the lowest possible price, that the attention of thepublic may be directed to this branch ofArchaeology.
I ought here to state,that I have had much fri endly inter
course with, and have the greatest possible esteem for,
Professor Munch of the University of Christiania,who stands
high am ong Norway’s most talented literary men. I have
the sam e esteem and respect for m y fii end E tatsraad Rafn,
X PRE FACE .
the talented secretary of the Royal Northern Society of
Antiquari es of Denm ark, who has added so much to the
science in its publications. With Mr Stephens I have not thepleasure of being acquainted, but I am fully aware of his
high literary acquirements. Had either, or any other,afforded the requisite elucidation of the Runes, I would havebeen spared considerable labour. If any errors are found inthese
,they are entirely my own, as I have had no assistance
in their interpretation .
I have to express my best thanks to Mr Farrer for his kindpermission to make such use of his work as I m ight deemexpedient to Captain Thomas, R.N ., for perm ission to copy
his plan and elevation of M esehowe and to Thomas S. Muir,for his ground-plans of it.
The remarkable representations of the Dragon, and theSerpent-knot, were photographed on the spot at M esehowe,
and then Copied on stone. The ancient S ilver ornaments
found in Orkney, now in the Society’S collection, I first gotphotographed, and then accurately lithographe(1, so thattheir appearance and relative sizes are carefully preserved
in the frontispiece of this work .
In such Runic inscriptions, we see that the Scandinaviansof the ninth and tenth centuries were men of superi or education, as compared with some of the neighbouring countriesand we become, after studying their Eddas, their Sagas, andtheir other interesting works, impressed with the belief thatthe Pagan and invading Scandinavian warriors, statesmen,and poets, in their writings, in their moral character, theirbravery and success in war,may be placed at least on a level
Author of an ably written work, Characteristics of O ld Church Architecture
in the M ainland and Western Islands of Scotland.” E dm onston Douglas, 1861 .
PRE FACE . xi
with the Pagan and invading Romans;and with this knowledge, we see no reason why the ancient and modern Northernlanguages, so replete with brilliant talent and interestinghistori cal records, Should not receive more attention than theyhave hitherto obtained, at least from the inhabitants of theBri tish Islands.I have endeavoured to make this publication as attractiveas possible by giving :
Opposite the lithographic Copies of the Runic in
scri ptions of M esehowe
The same,or Runic,words in Roman letters .The translation in modern northern orDanish.
The translation in English.
2d, The description of M esehowe.
3d , An Account of the M esehowe Inscriptions.4th,A short account of the Runic literature of Scan
dinavia.
5th, As perhaps connected with some of the inscriptions,particularly the Dragon and Serpent-knot.The visits to Orkney of the following Kings of
Norway :l st, King Harold H arfager ;2d, King Harold H aardraade
3d, King Magnus Barbein and
4th,King Haco on his voyage to attack Scotland .
6th, In the Notes :l st, The Scandinavian mode of warfare at sea in ancient times in the account ofthe sea-fightofKing
Olaf Trygvesen of Norway with the Kings of
PRE FACE .
Denm ark and Sweden, and Erik Jarl, a cele
2d, An account of the treasure discovered inOrkney,which is supposed to be referred to in,
at least, one of the inscriptions.3d, Elucidations of some of the names, &c ., sup
posed to be referred to.
7thly,A Glossary of the difficult or doubtful words .
ON THE
RUNlG LITERATURE or SCANDINAV IA
T H E RU N I C ALP H ABE T.
V h P 4RY >I< I~I4H4BP Y AF U DT H O R K H N I A B T B L M Y OT R
THAT we may duly appreciate the importance of thediscovery of the Runic inscriptions in M esehowe, it may beworth while to take a cursory view of the Runic Literature ofScandinavia. The most prominent evidence of the use of theRunes in ancient times, exists in the inscriptions on the stonemonuments erected in the three kingdoms of Scandinavia. Thegreatest number has been found in Sweden—namely, about1400;and there are about 400 in Denm ark and Norway : a fewinGreenland,two in England,none in themainland ofScotland
(unless the Swedish one in the West Princes Street Gardens,Edinburgh,may be considered such), some in the Isle of Man,one at Holy Island ofi
'
Arran, two only of indistinct character
in Shetland, and these in M esehowe, O rkney.
Not many of the continental ones have either peculiar or
local interest, and they are generally very short, affording
little information. Still, from some of the inscriptions, inter
esting deductions may be made as to the habits and charac
14 RUN Io LITE RATURE O F SCANDINAVIA.
A num ber of these monuments state, that the individuals
named had proceeded on predatory expeditions to,England.
For instance, one near Stavanger, Norway, says, Bjorn fell
in an expedition when Canute reigned in England, namely
H P.JRI’WILRII4II~~PIH IP’IIRSlfllko lhk llk Mo MR4N>Iko INI.
YIM R. lfil’ll. II’M ’lo
Koth Arkstin ristin thinaiftir Bior sun sin 89. var tuthir ilis Knutt soti Iklat.Koth Arkatin out these, in m em ory of Biom his son,who was killed in battle
when Knut (Canute) reigned in E ngland.
”
Those who went usually in regular expeditions were calledfarar, such as Iklotes farar,
” and I was shewn a stone in theancient church of O ld Upsala,with the following inscription :
lll’hlbko Il ”Mil. NH. IYN'lLWRI W 'llk N’MRI” H Phk Ill.
Sigwithr stain thinaIklats fari aftir W itarf fathur Sin.
Sigwith cut this stone in m em ory ofW itarf his father, aleader to E ngland.
England is spelt in such ins criptions variously ; such asIglats, Iklauths, Eglans,Auklans,Aklati, Eglati, Egloti, andI lati.
Some of the stones also bear that the individuals namedwere leaders to !or fought or died in] Greece, Krikifari to As ia, Asfari ; to Jerusalem, Jorsolafari ;to Lombardy, Longbartlantfarar, &c. W esterferd
” and Westenhap also occur, and these expressions apply to the voyage,embracing Orkney, the Hebrides, and Ireland, and thereforespecially to the locality we have before us.
One of the two Scandinavian Runic inscriptions referred to,as found in England,was discovered in 1855 on the west wall
16 RUNIC LITERATURE O F SCANDINAVIA.
In noticing the remarkable inscription in the Firth of
Clyde, it may be observed that,when King Haco came to theScottish coast to endeavour to retake the Scottish islands,he is said to have anchored at M elanseyer, M olan
’
s IsleBay, or Holy Island Roads, on his return, where he lay somenights and we find in the cave on Holy Island, ofl
'
Lamlash,Arran, the following inscription
HYhM I 4>I<+H RH"!
Niculae thaene raast. ”
Nicolas out these.
”
We have every reason to suppose that this inscription wascut by one of King H aco’s com m anders, named Nicolas ofGiska, who was in the expedition. The Runes are evidentlystung Runes, and of the date of Baco’s expedition. Thereare other inscriptions in the same cave but none of them so
distinct as to be pronounced Scandinavian. We are indebtedto Professor Daniel Wilson, in his interesting and valuablework on the P rehistori c Annals of S cotland, for bringing thisbefore the public—aide page 531 .
There are several well- cut Scandinavian Runic inscriptions
on monuments in the form of crosses in one of our Scottishislands,Man, which are com paratively of little interest, and,from the characters, may be pronounced to belong to the
twelfth century. Copies of several of the monuments and
inscriptions may be seen in Dr DanielWilson’s able work,already referred to, page 537 .
O ne of these monuments, of which there is a perfect copyin the Museum of the Society ofAn tiquaries of Scotland, has
RUN IC LITE RATURE O F ScAND INAv rA . 17
the following inscription. We give it as a fair example of
the others,which are generally sepulchral.
Phkl‘Hko HM . RIM I Ykhé PM . AIM . F’H’I’ 6MUh Bkhbhko 6M . +4426.
Thurlior Neaki risti krus thanaaft Fisk sun sin bruthur suna rs.
Thurlior Neake cut this cross over Fiak his son, brother’s son ofa r.
We shall add the inscription on a Scandinavian Runic
monument which can be seen in Edinburgh, and may beconsidered a very good representation of the greater num berof Runic monuments in Sweden. It was brought fromSweden by S ir Alexander S etoun of Preston in 1787 . It isof granite, five feet in height, by three and a half feet inbreadth, and is situated on the south side of West PrincesStreet Gardens.
JRI. REV"H'Mll. AV’IER. W'lbhk.111k t . >I<MPBLAH . HIE.
Ari risti stain aftir Bislm fathur S in Guth hialbi and sin.
Ary cut (this) stone over H ialm his father, God help his Spirit.
It is to be regretted that the hammer has been recentlyapplied to this very superior specimen of a Scandinavian
Runic monument, and two letters are knocked off, SO that itought to be removed without delay to a place of safety.
Scandinavian Runic inscriptions also occur on houses, on
churches, on church- bells, on fonts, on drinking- horns, and onwooden calendars ofvarious ages. Among the most remarkableinscriptions in Runes,other than on the stone monuments,maybe mentioned the Scandinavian Runic inscription on thestatue ofthe Lion,which had been taken by theVenetians fromAthens in 1687, and the meaning of which has been so fullyexplained by the talented Secretary of the Royal Society of
Antiquari es of Denmark, C . C. Rafn, Esquire. Some of the
18 RUNIC LITERATURE O F SCANDINAVIA .
Runic letters in the inscription on the Lion, are much worn
out, and therefore have to be supplied, and cannot well bedescribed without suitably formed types . The English of the
inscriptions can only therefore be given here. On the leftside, on a Seroll, are apparently the words
H akon, along with Ulf, Asm und,and O rn, took this port. These m en,with
H arald the Tall, im posed heavy contributions on the inhabitants of the country on
account of the resistance of the Greeks. Dalk rem ained from necessity in distantlands. Egil was with Ragnar on an expedition to Ru(m enia) and Arm enia.
”
And on the right side, on a different- formed scroll
Asm und cut these Runes alongwith Asgeir, Thorleif, Thord, and Ivar,at therequest of H arald the Tall,although the Greeks opposed (or obliterated)
The monuments in Jutland to King Gorm and Queen Thyra,are considered in Denmark to be very interesting. KingGorm died in 941, and therefore these inscriptions must beamong the oldest in that country. The words on Queen
Thyra’
s monument are translated
Gorm the King, erected this m onum ent to his Queen, Thyra,Denm ark’
s Love.
And on King Gorm’s monument
H arold the Kingordered these m onum ents to be raised to Gorm his father,and
to Thyra his m other. H arald also subdued all Denm ark and Norway, andChristianised the Danish people.
”
The King Harold mentioned in the preceding, was KingHarald Blaatand, and both monum ents are much valued ashistori cal records.The inscriptions explanatory of the carvings on elevencompartments of the ancient baptismal- font, in the Church of
O kirkeby, in the Island of Bornholm, described in the
RUNIC LITERATURE O F SCANDINAVIA. 19
Antiqaam’
ske Annaler, vol. 4, page 140, also possess consider
able interest .We have reason to suppose that before the use of paper inScandinavia, Runes would be used in shortly recording theevents in ancient times, as also the laws that were thenenacted, on wood such as thin plates of beech (from whencethe word book is supposed to be derived), or plates or blocks
of ash or birch. We have no knowledge from any existingremains of such, that the Scandinavian Runes were so usedbut several very interesting and well- cut Rune- staves or
calendars are in existence ; the oldest of which is of thefourteenthThe number ofworks in wri tten Runes discovered on paper
or parchm ent is inconsiderable, and the subjects not of
unusual or extraordinary kind. One on six sheets of parch
ment of 12mo size, a fragment without beginning or end,which was found in W allentuna Church, Sweden, is now in
the Royal Museum of Antiquaries, Stockholm, the age notknown and in the University Library of Copenhagen, thereis a manuscript in Runes on parchment, in 8vo, with a shortaccount of the Danish kings to the year 1319, and alsoa statement as to the boundaries between Denmark and
Sweden.
These, with one or two almanacs of a comparatively latedate, the oldest ofwhich is of the year 1328 (published in the
Fastes Danici of Olaus W orm ius), are all the ScandinavianRunic manuscripts of any value known.
W hat we have here stated will satisfy our readers that theinscriptions lately discovered in M esehowe are of surpas sing
Saxo Gram m aticus says, Lignum celebre quondam chartarum genus.—Lib.
i.,p. 60.
20 RUN IC LITE RATURE O F SCANDINAVIA .
interest and importance, and combine in one spot agreaternum ber of interesting Scandinavian Runic inscriptions thanhave yet been discovered in Northern Europe .
There are several modifications of the form of the Scandinavian Runes which do not require to be noticed here, andwhich can only be interesting to the advanced scholar inRunic literature but we may here state that the AngloSaxon and Ogham Runes are quite distinct in character andnumber from the Scandinavian Runes, and do not comewithin the scope of these, necessarily limited, rem arks .
O N TH E M E S E H O W E I N S CR I P T I O N S.
It is a fortunate circumstance that the M esehowe has beenso long covered up,because the nature of the rock, of the O ldRed Sandstone, upon which the inscriptions are cut, is suchthat if they had been exposed for half a century to the atmosphere, they would have been obliterated. Already one of
the inscriptions has become illegible from the friability of thestone and it will be advisable that the proprietor, who, weknow,
is anxious to preserve them, puts on an air- tight roofif ofwood, it might be opened to the visitor in dry or favourable weather, but it should not be opened in moist, damp, orfrosty weather.
The greatest peculiarity of the M esehowe inscriptions, ascomparedwith the previously known inscriptions,is the fulnessof the statements,and the amplitude of the facts. One or twoprove that the crews of such predatory ships referred to, hadbeen either wrecked, or driven on shore by the enemy, andwere waiting until an opportunity occurred to escape ;that
22 M E S E H OW E INSCRIPTIONS.
the jarls or heads of local authority at the time,were opposedto the freebooter’s plundering excursions,and that the circumstance of the vikings concealing themselves in such placesof securi ty as M esehowe, Speaks favourably as to the systemof governm ent there.
In comparing these inscriptions with all those of a similarage in the three kingdoms of Scandinavia, we find a greatS im ilarity in the type, and not a great difference in thelanguage so that the deduction we are fully entitled to makeis, that ONLY O N E LANGUAGE W AS USED IN S CANDINAVIA ABOUTNINE CENTURIES SINCE, with only small differences betweeneach country, easily seen and understood in that age.But while the prominent portions of these inscriptions aredecidedly Norroenic, Icelandic, or what may be truly called O ldDanish, there is running through the larger inscriptions astrange, and almost amusing, peculiarity,which m ight induceus to suppose that the freebooters had a sort of lingua
franca of their own, so sufficiently puzzling to the Scandinavian scholars of the present tim e, as to make Jam ieson
’
s
Scottish Dictionary, and an ordinary Swedish dictionary,nearly as necessary as Bask’s Icelandic in endeavouring toobtain the meaning of such larger inscriptions. A learned andadmirably prepared dictionary, E gillson
’
s P oetic I celandic,
lately published at I found of great value in
leading me to the meaning of several words.In the adm irably written work of one of our former secre
taries, Dr Daniel Wilson, the Archaeology and P rehistoric
Annals of S cotland ,before referred to, and which will ever
remain a valuable standard work in Scotland, Dr Wilsonsays with prophetic acuteness, in Orkney no Runic monu
S . Egillson Lexicon Poeticum Antiques Linguw Septentrionalis
24 M E S E H O W E IN SCRIPTION S.
in the old Norse dialect notwithstanding the justice of
Mr J . M. Kem ble’
S remarks, that the characters of theNorwegians, Swedes, Danes, and Icelanders, are not lessdi stinct from those of the Goths,High and Low Germans,andAnglo
- Saxons, than the languages of the several nations which
they The Ruthwell cross is unquestionably byfar the most important Runic monument in Britain, and hasexcited an attention fully equal to the great interest justlypertaining to it. A beautiful engraving of this ancient
monument in the fourth volume of the Archaeologia Scotica,accompaniedwith carefulfac - similes ofits inscriptions,rendersany m inute description of it superfluous.
Setting aside certain old and sufficiently vague local
traditions recorded in the first Statistical Account of the
Parish of Ruthwell, we obtain the earliest authentic notice of
it only in the seventeenth century, at which tim e it appearsto have still remained in the parish church, uninjured by any
of those earlier ebullitions ofmisdirected popular zeal to which
so many Scottish relics of Chri stian art fell a prey. When,however
,the struggle between Charles I . and his people was
rapidly hastening to a crisis, and religious difl'
erences were
forced by many concurrent influences into violent collision,the GeneralAssembly of the Presbyterian Church of Scotland,which met at St Andrews in the month of July 1642, passedan order decreeing the demolition of the Ruthwell cross as amonument of idolatry. The order met with a less hearty andthorough- going execution than m ight have been anticipated
from the spirit prevailing at a period when the whole course
of public events had tended to inflame men’s minds to the
Arche ologia, vol. xxviii. p. 327.
M E S E H O W E INSCRIPTIONS. 25
uttermost. The colum n, however, was thrown down andbroken in several pieces but it still lay in the church, andwas exam ined there by Pennant so recently as 1772. Soonafter this, however, it was cast out into the churchyard,whereits exposure to weather, and its liability to careless andwanton mutilation, threatened at length most effectually toaccomplish the object of the St Andrews Assembly’s Order of
1642,when fortunately the Rev. Dr Duncan was presented tothe pari sh . Soon afterwards he had the fragments of thevenerable memorial pieced together, and re- erected withinthe friendly shelter of the manse garden- amonument to hisown good taste, with which his name will be associated bythousands who know not the large -hearted benevolence andpiety with which he adorned the sacred oflice which he filled .
Not content,however,with m erely restoring the venerablememorial, Dr Duncan executed careful drawings of it, fromwhich the engravings in the fourth volume of the ArchaeologiaScotica were made. These are accompanied with a historyfrom his pen, and an accurate translation of the Latin inscription, which is cut in Roman characters on the back and frontof the cross. With the Runic inscription,which occupies theremaining S ides of the monum ent, Dr Duncan attempted nomore than to furnish the Scottish antiquaries with an accuratecopy, leaving those who deemed themselves able for the taskto encounter its difficulties, and render an intelligible version
of its meaning. This was accordingly undertaken by MrThorleif G. Repp, a learned northern scholar, a native of
Iceland, then resident in Edinburgh,who, reading the letterscorrectly enough, proceeded to weave them into imaginarywords and sentences, by means of which he makes out the
inscription to record a gift for the expiation of an injury, of
26 M E SE H OW E INSCRIPTIONS.
a cri stpason or baptismal- fount, of eleven pounds’ weight,made
by the authority of the Therfusian fathers,for the devastationof the fields.’ Other portions of the inscription were made tosupply the name of the devastated locality, The dale of
Ashlafr,’ a place as little heard of before as were its holy
conservators, the Monks of Therfuse ! Dr Duncan remarks,in furnishing an abstract of Mr Repp’s rendering of theRuthwell Runes : It is obvious that, in future inquiries onthis subject, it wi ll be of considerable importance to fix thelocality ofAshlafardhaland Therflise The accurate drawings
of Dr Duncan, however, published as they were to the learnedworld by the Scottish An tiquaries,had at length supplied themost important desiderata towards the elucidation of the oldAnglo- Saxon memorial . Professor Finn Magnussen was thefirst to avail himself of the new elements for the satisfactoryinvestigation of this venerable Teutonic relic, and published,in Danish, in the Anneler for Nordisk O ldkyndighed og
Historie, 1836 and nearly at the same time in English,in the Report addressed by the Royal Society of NorthernAntiquaries to its British and American Members,
’ a revisedversion of the Ruthwell inscription, in which,while confirm ing
the somewhat startling opinion ofMr Repp, that it was in alanguage consisting both of Anglo- Saxon and old Northernwords, he arrives at very different, but still more precise conclus ions. The learned Dane, however, had obtained, as heconceived, a source of information which not even the zealousincum bent ofRuthwell parish had access to
Fortunately,’
says he, we are in possession ofwhat m ust be adm itted to be anim portant docum ent in the case before us, a. docum ent the existence of which was
unknown as well to M r Repp as, to the best of our belief, to all others now living,
that have devoted attention to the m onum ent in question. DrDuncan observes that
M E SE H OW E INSCRIPTIONS. 27
the capital of the colum n,which in thedelineations he gives of it shews no charactersor traces of such, had, however, form erly inscriptions, now quite illegible. The
greater part of them ,m eanwhile, are found on adelineation of the two broader sidesof the said capital, which together with the two Runic sides of the whole colum n
(consequently m ore of it than has been given by Bickes or Gordon), is to be seen on
alarge folio copperplate engraving,now the property ofm e,Finn M agnussen. Itwas
given to m e som e years ago by m y m uch- lam ented friend and predecessor,ProfessorThorkelin,who, however, his m em ory being im paired by age, could not rem em bernythingm ore about it than that it represented acolum n in Scotland,and that hehad obtained it, he knew not how or ofwhom , duringhis travels in Britain.
’
This rare, and indeed seem ingly unique print, ProfessorMagnussen accordingly designates the ‘
Thorkelin Engraving.
’
Its age he conceives must be about 150 years, or perhaps stillolder. Be this as it may,
’ he adds,‘ it serves to throw a
new and most important light—in fact, the most importantyet obtained - on the design and purpose of the column,inasmuch as it has preserved the initial words of its inscription,setting forth that one Ofa, a descendant of Voda, had causedit to be cut,
’
&c. Accordingly, setting aside the humblerattempts of Mr Repp, the Danish professor substitutes am arriage for the devastation of his predecessor, discovers fourimportant historical personages in the record, nearly fixes theprecise year A .D . 650 for the handfasting, and altogetherfurnishes an entirely new chapter of Anglo- Saxon history
,
based almost entirely on this Thorkelin print ! Some ablenorthern scholars,more fam iliar with Anglo- Saxon literaturethan Professor Magnussen,adopted the very summary process
of dealing with the new element thus unexpectedly broughtto bear on the inquiry, by doubting the authenticity, if noteven the existence, of this unique print. O f its existence,
Report ofR S . of Northern Antiquaries to Brit. and Am er. M em s , 1836,pp. 88, 89.
28 M E S E H OW E IN SCRIPTIONS.
however, there can be no doubt, since, instead of being therarity which Professor Magnussen imagined,it is to be found in
every archaeological library in the kingdom, being none other
(as I thinkwillno longer be doubted) than one of two etchings,executed by the well- kown Scottish antiquary, Mr Adam deCardonnel, and forming P lates LIV . and LV. of the VetustaMonumenta,vol. ii.,published in 1789. These are accompaniedby a description furnished by R. G. (Roger Gale), and to it
the following postscript has subsequently been added,which itwill be seen supplies the account Professor Magnussen failedto obtain from his aged friend : Since this account was readbefore the Society !of Antiquaries of London], the drawinghas been shewn to M r Professor Thorkelin, who has been
investigating all such monuments of his countrymen in thiskingdom, but he has not returned any opinion.
’ Theseengravings of the Ruthwell inscription appear to have excitedlittle interest,probably on account of their being accompaniedby no critical analysis or attempt at translation. Theywouldseem to have escaped the notice ofMr J . M . Kemble,otherwisehe would have found there all that the drawings ofDr Duncan
supply, with, indeed, some Slight additions for it chancesoddly enough that the old Scottish Antiquary has copied theAnglo- Saxon Runes—about which it m ay reasonably bedoubted if he knew anything - a great deal more correctlythan the Latin inscription in familiar Roman characters, some
of which he has contrived to render totally unintelligible .
It was probably a result of this carelessness,that in arranginga broken fragment of the top of the cross, along with thelower stem, he misplaced the parts, wedding the imperfectupper fragments of the Latin, to the remainder of the AngloSaxon inscription. The Offspring of this misalliance was the
M E S E H O W E INSCRIPTIONS. 29
Ofa, Voden’
s kinsm an of Professor Magnussen, whose doublegenealogy is given wrth amusing precision, according to theY ounger Edda !’ The slightest glance at Cardonnel
’
s etchingswill shew that the learned Dane, in attempting to decipherthis supposed invaluable addition,was only torturing ill - CopiedRoman characters into convenient Northern or Anglo- Saxon
Runes .In 1838, Mr John M. Kemble, an English Anglo- Saxon
scholar, undertook to unwind this ravelled skein, and in anable paper On Anglo- Saxon pointed out the
valuelessness of any amount ofknowledge of the Scandinavianlanguages as a means for deciphering Anglo- Saxon inscriptions . Following out his own views he accordingly produceda translation difl
'
ering, tote caelo, from either of those alreadyreferred to, but which commends itself in some degree evento the mere English student, who detects in the O ld AngloSaxon the radicals of his native tongue as in the original of
Mr Repp’s Cristpason —KRIST W AES O N RODI Christ was o n
the Rood or Cross. Combating with the difficulties arisingsolely from the mutilated and fragmentary state of what MrKemble so justly styles this noble monum ent ofAn lo- Saxonantiquity,
’ he demonstrates the rhythm ic character of theconstruction, deducing from this the strongest proof of theaccuracy of his reading. Still should the reader, who is thuscompelled to consider two learned versions of this inscriptionas no better than the Antiquary’s Agricolad/icavitlibens labens,hesitate about accepting the third as less open to challenge
,
his scepticism could not perhaps be greatly blamed. A
remarkable chance, however, threw in the way of the
Archwologia, vol. xxviii , p. 327 .
30 M E S E H O W E INSCRIPTIONS.
intelligent Anglo- Saxon scholar an altogether indisputableconfim ation of the general accuracy of the conclusions he hadarrived at. A comparison of the various steps in this processof elucidation furnishes one O f the most S ingular modern
contributions to the curiosities of literature. A few yearsago, a MS. volum e, consisting chiefly ofAnglo - Saxon hom ilies,was discovered at V ercelli, in the Milanese, but which alsocontained, intermingled with the prose, some Anglo- Saxonreligious poems. One of these, entitled a Dream O f theHoly Rood,
’ extends to 310 lines, and in this are found thewhole of the fragmentary lines previously translated by MrKemble, along with the context which fills up the numerouslacunae of the time -worn inscription on the Ruthwell cross .No confirmation of the accuracy of conclusions previouslypublished could well be more gratifying or satisfactory thanthis independently ofwhich the beauty of the Anglo- Saxon
poem suffices to convey a singularly vivid idea of the civilisation existing at the period—probably not later than theninth century—when it was engraved on the venerableScottish monument which has anew excited the veneration ofthe modern descendants of its old Anglo Saxon builders, and,th some portion of its former beauty renewed by the piety
ofmodern hands, is restored to the occupation of its ancientsite . O f the high civilisation of this period, however, thestudent of Anglo - Saxon history can need no new proof whenhe bears in mind, as Mr Kemble has remarked, that beforethe close of the eighth century Northumberland was moreadvanced in civilisation than any other portion of TeutonicEurope.’
It always seemed probable,’ says MrKemble in concluding
his observations on the old Scottish monument,‘that m uch
32 M E SE H O W E INSCRIPTIONS.
bold,firm hand, and The O ld Wizard’s, in a tremulous,uncer
tain manner ;and how well cut are the inscriptions,No. 21
and No. 22, and the Dragon, and Serpent-knot.The mode ofwri ting and spelling—such as not using, but ina single instance, the angular S ,and the spelling the equivalent to cut, generally with R A E I S T—satisfy us that theseinscriptions were made principally by the Norwegian visitors.When we find that the inscriptions mention the localities
where the treasures were lost or concealed, we m ight be
induced to question the propriety of giving such publicityto their positions but it must be remembered, that it isprobable that only one or two of the best educated in eachship could wri te or read the Runic, and that there was a
union of purpose in all such matters among the educated
class of the vikings .It is evident from some of the inscriptions, that when themost of these were wri tten, the vikings were still in a state
of darkness as to religion and it is more than likely, nay, itis self evident, that the wild habits of robbery and rapinewhich they pursued, could only be followed by those who
were still in a state of heathenism.
DE S CR I P T I O N O F M E S E H O W E.
It is evident that the hall ofM esehowe,whatever itmay havebeen applied to at a previous period, was specially taken
possession of by the freebooters, and prepared as a place ofsecurity in their progress to and from the islands, the coastof Scotland, and Ireland.
Several attempts have been made to give the true interpretation of this word M eshow or M esehowe M eshow, orM esehowe,
”
is so spelt by the m inister of the parish of Frithand Stenness,as the name of this now celebrated elevation, inhis account of the parish in the N ew S tatistical Aecount ofS cotland . It has been said that it is probably derived fromthe Icelandic word, Mey, Virgin and it may have been in
the heathen age a place dedicated to the three Meyer,” or .
prophetesses,mentioned in the Edda,who predicted the fate
ofman, and afterwards have been used in later timm for theperformance of the mass,
“mess ” or “m acs
” being the ancient
term but perhaps we do not require to search among foreignlanguages for the interpretation. We find that in the Gaelic
34 DESCRIPTION O F M E S E H O W E .
language, the word measa” means to judge, and achd is
the Gaelic letters expressive of mound or bank, or hillsidetogether, Judgment mound but the word perhaps merelymeans the “M esthow
” or largest of the two elevations. Theyare situated about 1% m iles from the Stennis Circle, and donot seem to have any connection with it.
Comparing M esehowe and its interior with the interior ofthe howe of Quanterness, of which an engraving and an accurate description has been given by Dr Barry in his H istory ofthe O rkney I slands, and the account given by Dr DanielWilsonin his interesting work, already referred to, of the P rehistoricAnnals of S cotland, of the howe opened by Mr Petrie onW ideford Hill, and also the howe at Saroock, opened byCaptain Thomas, R N , and described in his able work illustrating his interesting discoveries in Orkney, we find a great
sim ilarity in each there seems to have been no appearance ofcrem ation or sepulture, no urns were found as were found inthe cairns in Orkney, and only a skeleton, as if accidental, inthe one at Quanterness. An d considering that in all of thosewhere the bottoms of the interiors were examined, the bonesof animals, such as the horse, cow, sheep,boar,&c.,were foundin abundance, but generally not a vestige of hum an bones,we agree with Dr Daniel Wilson, Dr Barry, and CaptainThomas that these buildings,which, from their massive structure may be styled Cyclopean, were used for the purpose of
defence and security, and this opinion will be strengthened
ifwe examine minutely the construction of M esehowe.
The height of the mound is 36 feet;the height of the innerbuilding,formed of the large orCyclopean stones,about 16 feet,and this was covered with flat or large ashlar stones, apparently to the height of about 8 feet more,imm ediately above the
DE SCRIPTION O F M E SE H O W E . 35
top. This covering of smaller or ashlar stones, increased inthickness down to the bas e of the building,where the thickness appears to be about 20 feet, forming a strong protectionagainst any attack fromwithout;but the strongest proof that
the interior was used for the security of its inhabitants, is theingenious construction of the entrance;in Mr Farrer
’
s elegantillustrated work on the excavations in Orkney,which has beenalready referred to,‘ we are informed that the entrance for thedistance of 22% feet,was only 2 feet 4 inches square,adm itting
only one person at a time in a crouching manner, the passagethen enlarges to 3} feet in width, and 4feet 4inches in height.At the commencement of this enlarged pas sage there is a
triangular recess in the wall about 2 feet deep and 3§ feet in
height andwidth,and opposite to it is a stone of equal size tothe entrance of the enlarged passage which could have beenpushed into the opening to prevent access but this is not all,the enlarged passage of 26 feet in length had been formed byfour entire blocks on the roof, sides, and floor;and furtheron, becomes narrowed by two upright slabs of stone to 2 feet5 inches, which slabs are 2 feet 4inches in breadth. Betweenthese slabs, from their form and position, we may supposethat there was another stone door or defence, the distancethence being 2 feet 10 inches to the main chamber. All theseseem to prove that the Object of the construction was to givethe inmates the power to keep out intruders by force, becausea few within could have, from the smallness or narrowness of
the entrance, kept out any number attempting to force theirway from without.
Notice ofRunic Inscriptions discovered during the excavations in the O rkneys,m ade byJam es Farrer, M .P. Printed for private circulation, 1862.
36 DE SCRIPTION O F M E S E H OW E .
We find that this passage was from theentrance to the doorway at recess, feet in length.
Do. from recess doorway, toinner doorway,
Inner doorway, to central chamber,
Making the entire length of passage, 62 feet.But great additional protection was obtained by the form id
able fosse or ditch which surrounded the mound at the distance of about 1 12 feet from the outer cells, the width of
which ditch is 40 feet, and it must have been of considerabledepth, and therefore difficult to pass over, at the time it wasformed, even at the present time the depth is from 4 to 8feet.In confirmation of the idea that these buildings were intended for defence or protection, Barry in his H istory ofO rkney, says in reference to the analogous building at Quanterness, &c., They stand in full view of the harbours and ofthe ocean, and are evidently so arranged as to comm unicatewith one another and the probability is that they were constructed by the original inhabitants about the eighth or ninthcentury to protect themselves from the sudden predatoryexcursions of the northern vikings or freebooters, and thatM esehowe had been seized and altered by the latter for thepurpose of Sheltering their crews in difficulties.
It is probable that the Orkney and Shetland Islands werein peaceable possession of the original inhabitants, supposedto be Britons or P icts, until about the end of the eighth orbeginning of the ninth centuri es. The annals of Ulster statethe Northmen came first to Ireland in 806, which is said
to be about the time when the Hebrides and Ireland were
EXPEDITIONS OF NORTHERN SOVEREIGNS TO ORKNEY .
The inscriptions we find in M esehowe appear to be principally records by the crews of some of the predatory expeditions, some of whom had been shipwrecked ;others engagedin repairing their ships, and some detained with contrarywinds and while to us the expressions Wester ferd,Westernexpeditions,andW est Sea,sound strangely,wemust rem emberthat Orkney is to the west of Norway, and the most suitablestation for ships from Norway, or northern Scandinavia, torefit or procure provisions, before proceeding to the Hebridesor Ireland, then usual places of destination in the vikingexpeditions.But we consider that the beautiq y drawn Dragon, andthe Serpent-knot,which we find in M esehowe, are strong proofs
of visits having been made to the interior by some of theofficers of the royal squadrons that came from Norway, andwe therefore give the following curtailed notices of the visits
offour Norwegian kings who came to Orkney,namely,MagnusBarfod, Harold H aarfager, Harold H aardraade, and Haco,which we translate from the old Saga or records.
E XPE DITION S O F NORTHE RN SOVE RE IGN8 TO ORKN E Y.
It is but justice to the memory of the ancient sovereigns ofthe Scandinavian kingdoms, that such pirates were not soengaged by their authority, but often against their expressorders, and we have much pleasure in stating this ;suchpredatory excursions having been different from those expeditions of conquest which, although not successful in Scotland, in England, placed Knut the Great on the Englishthrone, raised Rollo to a French dukedom, and William theNorman to a kingdom.
AS a proof of what we say of the conduct of some of theseNorwegian sovereigns, we give the following from Snorro
S turleson’
s H eim skringla,to shew thatKingHarold H aarfager
(of the beautiful hair) came, in the year 888, expressly toShetland, Orkney, and the Hebrides, for the purpose of
ridding these islands of the pirates.
E XPEDITION TO TH E W E ST BY K ING HAROLD H AARFAGE R.
King Harold having learned that the V ikings (or pirates)who knew the islands and places in the west sea, and plun
dered there in summer, had been also plundering in theinterior of Norway during winter,he pursued them and drovethem all out of the country and they took to the open seas .The king having determined to get ri d of them, in summer
sailed with his fleet to the west sea. He first came to Shetland
,and killed there all those vikings who could not get
away. He then sailed south to the Orkneys, and cleared all
these islands of the V ikings, and then proceeded to the
Hebrides and attacked and slew many of them
H aroldKonnings spordi atvidaurn m ittlandetheriadaV ikingar;their era'
vetrum
voro fyrir vestan haf hann hafdi thil leidangr uti hverr sum ar;oc kannedi eyar ocutseer. E nn hvar sem V ickingar vrdv varir vid her hans, thaflydo allir cc flestir c
F
E XPEDITIONS O F NORTHERN SOVE REIGNS TO ORKN E Y.
The same author tells us that the Orkney Islands sufl'
ered
much from the Danish and Norwegian vikings during the time
of the jarls of Orkney,Brusius and Thorfinn . The words usedby Snorre are
,
“The Norwegians and Danes in their piratical
expeditions plundered m uch on the west sea, and came often
to Orkney in proceeding west and returning east,doing much
harm there .
”
EXPEDITION O F K ING HAROLD TH E BOLD .
On another memorable occasion, King Harold H aardraade
(the stern or hold ) of Norway, in the year 1066, proceededwith a large fleet and army on an expedition to England, forthe purpose of attacking King Harold Godwinsen of England.
On this voyage, he arrived in Orkney, and having refitted,leaving there his queen E lisif, or Elizabeth, and his twodaughters, Mari a and Ingegerda, he took the two earls of
Orkney, Paul and Erland, and their ships and troops withhim , in addition to his Norwegian forces—with these additionsthe ships of war then amounted to two hundred, besidessmaller ships and transports, the number being in all upwards
of five hundred—and sailed for the coast of England, landedat Cleveland, and defeated a large army sent against him
but he was afterwards defeated and slain at Stam ford Bridge,on the 25th September 1066 .
haf ut. E nn er Konningleiddiz thettastarf, the. var thatacinn sum ar,at H aroldr
Konungs sigldi m ed her sinn V estr um haf kom hann fyrst vid H jaltland oc drapthar allaV ikingr tha. er eigi flydaundan. S idan siglir H aroldr Konungr sudr tilO rkneys, oc reinsadi thar alltaf V ikingom . E ptir that for hann allt i Sudreyiar, cc
herriar thar : harm drap thar m arge. V ikings. - From Snorre Sturleson’
s H eim slcingla.
EXPEDITIONS O F NORTHE RN SOVEREIGN8 TO ORKNEY.
EXPEDITION O F M AGNUS BARFO D .
Another remarkable royal visit to Orkney was performed by
King Magnus Barfod, or Barbein,who proclaim ed in Norway
his intention ofundertaking a “westerfer or western expedi
tion and being joined by his principalwarriors, he set sail insixty large ships. Having arrived at Orkney,he appointed hisson,then only eight years ofage,Viceroy,who,on account ofhisyouth, was assisted by councillors and adm inistrators. Hetook the two Earls of Orkney prisoners, and sent them toNorway, and made their sons, Bacon, Erland, and Magnus,join his army and after proceeding to the Islands of theHebrides, Man, and Anglesey, and putting them under sub
jection, he returned in the following spring to Norway. Heafterwards proceeded on a second expedition from Norwayto Orkney
,then to Ireland, where he was slain in an ambush
in 1 103. Snorro S turleson thus describes the dress andaccoutrements which King Magnus wore when he was slain :King Magnus had a helmet on his head, and carried a redshield upon which was inlaid a golden lion, and he had gi rtby his Side his Sword Leggebidor,
’ which was very Sharp,and the hilt was of ivory, ornamented with gold. In hishand he carried a short spear, and he wore a red S ilk jacketover his under- dress, which, before and behind, had a Lionsewed on it in yellow S ilk, and every one said that there neverwas a bolder or finer- looking m an .
” He had reigned ten yearsover Norway
,and was not thirty when he was slain. We are
told by Torfoeus, vol. 3, book 7, cap . 8, and by Munch in his
H istory ofN orway,that the origin of the cognomenBarfod,pro
perlyBarbein (barelegs),arose from the circum stance thatKing
42 E xp E DITIO Ns O F NORTH E RN SOV E RE IGN S To ORKN E Y.
Magnus and his courtiers adopted the dress then worn bythe Scottish highlanders —a short petticoat or kilt withouttrousers .
E XPE DITION O F K ING HACO.
The last and most remarkable visit made to Orkney by aNorwegian king, was that by K ing Haco, in 1263, which we
translate, and give,much curtailed, from the Flateyan andFri sian M S ., in the old northern language. H e had previouslybeen applied to by King Alexander II. of Scotland, to makean arrangement to yield up the islands on the Scottishcoasts, whi ch King Alexander claimed as belonging to Scotland and who while insisting on his claim against Angus
ofArgyle, died in the island of Kerrara, near Mull, 8th July
1249.
Haco resolved to resist any attempt to deprive him of theseparts of his dominions, and endeavoured to strengthen his
influence in the Scottish islands by giving his daughter toHarold,King ofMan,and inviting John,King of the Hebrides,Magnus, Earl of Orkney, and the Abbot of Iona and otherindividuals ofinfluence in these islands, to visit him in Norway.
But King Haco found that the Scottish power was more con
centrated and enlarged since the reign ofAlexander the First,and that without some great cfl
'
ort he would have to yield upthe superiori ty to the Scottish monarch. Before trying toretake the islands by force,KingAlexander the Third sent, in
the summer of 1261, two ambassadors to King Haco, whoseembassy is thus quaintly mentioned In the sum mer of 1261there came to Norway two ambassadors from Alexander the
E xp E DITI O Ns O F NORTHERN SOVE REIGNS To ORKNEY. 43
Scottish king, the one an archdeacon, and the other a knightnamed Missel. They used more fair words than true,
”
as theking Haco said and they went so suddenly away that noone knew of it until they were under sail. On this the king
sent Briniolf Jonssun after them, who brought them back.
The king Said that they must stay the winter in Norway fortrying to go away without asking leave, which was not likewhat other ambassadors These ambassadors had nodoubt been unsuccessful in their embas sy, and were anxiousto escape the too kind hospitality of the Norwegian court.They having returned in the spri ng of 1262, reported theresult. King Alexander III. then endeavoured to take theIslands by force, and sent the Earl of Ross, Kvarnac, the sonof M acCam hal, who com menced hostilities in Sky.
King Haco having received intelligence of this,was muchannoyed, and laid the subject before his council, and orderswere issued to get all the troops and provisions which Norwaycould produce to be ready for shipment in the beginning ofthefollowing year. In spring a num erous army andwell- appointedfleet (the ship conveying King Haco being built entirely of
oak, and having splendid ornaments of gold dragons at thebow and stern,and having twenty- seven banks of oars), sailedfrom Norway for Orkney, several small squadrons having
preceded the main fleet.
With a favouring breeze King Haco arrived at Shetland,
Urn sum aritkom o vestann af Skotlandi, sendim ennAlexanders Skote Konongs,E rkidiakn cinn,ok riddari er M isselhet Their foro m eirrm ed fagoryrdom enn trunadi
atthvier konongi virdtiz. Their foro svai brott,at engi vissi fyrr en their hOfdi undirsegill sitt. Thasendi konongrBriniolfJonssun aftir theim , ok hafdi harm the aftr
m ed ser. Sagdi konongr at theirr skylldo vera i Noregi um vetrinn, fyrer that er
their villdo faraorlofslaust, fram er, enn, adrir sendim enn”
44 E XPEDITIONS O F NORTHE RN SOVEREIGN S To ORKNEY.
having been only two nights at sea, and, remaining there a
fortnight, sailed to Orkney and arrived at E ladervvig, near
Kirkwall. Staying there a few days, he sailed to Ronaldsve,where he was joined by Earl Ronald and the Orkney fleet
,
and after laying contributions on Caithness, proceeded on thevoyage, and passing the Lewis, arrived in Sky Sound, where
he was joined by the fleet of Magnus of M an and others,
and at Karrara by the fleet of King Dougal, and all theirtroops from the Hebrides. King Haco having by this tim eunder him one hundred well- appointed war- vessels and theircrews, sent fifty of his Ships to plunder at the Mull of Kintyre,and five to Bute. At Karrara, John, King of the Hebrides,came to Haco and told him that he had sworn fealty for hislands to the Scottish king, and offered to resign the lands heheld under King Haco .
King John was detained for some time byKingHaco,butwas
afterwards dismissed with presents, he promising to KingHaco to endeavour to obtain a peace between him and theking of Scotland. This not hav ing been effected, King Haco
sent as envoys to the Scottish king, to treat as to peace,Gillibert, bishop of Hamar, Henry,bishop of Orkney,AndreasNicholson, Andreas Plytt, and Paul Sur; but after much
delay no arrangement could be effected, and after several
other attempts,during a truce which had been agreed on,K ingHaco gave notice of its being at an end, and sent sixty ships toplunder on the north side of the Clyde,and detachments to proceed into the interi or of the Highlands,to Slay the inhabitantsand Obtain cattle. Much time had been lost, caused by protracted attempts at peace, probably not unwillingly on the
part of the Scottish m onarch, and stormy weather came on, as
the original narrative says
46 E xPE DITIO N s O F NORTHERN SOV E REIGNS To ORKNE Y.
In the morning after, King Haco came ashore with manypeople,who lightened the galley and brought it out to thefleet. The Scottish army appeared soon after. Thevan of the Scottish army consisted of about five hundredcavalry, all the horses wore breastplates, and many therehad Spanish horses all covered with armour ;the Scotch hadalso many foot- soldiers in armour . They carried mostly bowsand It is not intended, nor have we space, to givethe details of the battle at Large. But the Norwegianaccount,which we are quoting from, has detailed statements
of vari ous encounters, some successful and others the reverse,but ultimately the Norwegians drew off as the NorthernMS. states . Mr W orsaae, in his talented work, The Danes in
E ngland, S cotland, and I reland, says, The Scottish king had
in the meantime arrived on the spot with a large arm y. A
fiercebattle took place on the plain near Largs, 3d October
1263, inwhich the Norwegians, who were exhausted by theirendeavours to save their Ships, and who, on account of thestorm
,could not avail themselves of their whole force, were
overpowered.
”—Page 290. This battle, and the approach of
their, rak harm the. ut a eyina, oh Konongs Skipit heltz, og Iago tialldlausir til
dags. E nn um m orgynin er flteddi flaur KUGGRINN ok rak um aSkottland og lang
scip einn. V indrin tok at vaxaar eins neytto m enn thagruunfaeratheiraer hOfdo,
the var fellt it sim r fem taackeri aKonongskipi. E nn Konongriun for i bat ogreyri
ur til eyiarinnar oglet SyngiaserM esso. E nn Skipinn rak in asund ok um daginaesti storm in, sva at sum ir hioggo trein ok sum arak. Konongskipit rak og enn a
sundit, ok voro fyrer thasiau ackeri m ed bvi er their hofdo aKUGGINOM . O k hit atta
athal ackeri, ok rak egi bvi sidr;lido sidarr festo ackerin. Nocker fim skip rak
in at Ian
So m uch of the original is given to introduce theword Kuggin proof of the m ean
ingof this word as given in several of the translations of the inscriptions.Flateyan and Fris
EL M SS .
E XP E D IT I O N S O F NORTHERN SOVEREIGN8 TO ORKNEY.
winter compelled King Haco to return, and after bringing a
great part of his fleet, in the storm iest time of the year, a longvoyage on the mostdangerous coast in Europe,where in manyplaces there was no shelter, he arrived at Orkney. The verycircumstance of a king of so much caution and prudence,venturing to return with his Ships at such a season, gives thestrongest evidence of the superior character of the ships- ofwar and their crews. King Haco, on his arrival in Orkney,resided in the bishop’s palace,but,worn outwith the fatiguesand anxiety of such a long voyage, he died there on the 15thDecember 1263of the Norwegi an year, which comm enced atthat time on the 25th March.
Magnus H akonson, the son of Haco, was proclaimed king
of Norway, and saw it to be his interest to yield up to theScottish sovereign, the Hebrides, Man, and all the other
S cottish islands, excepting Orkney and Shetland, for the sum
of 4000 marks (to be paid in four years), and 100 marks ofannual quit- rent : and in the year 1468, the sovereignty of
Orkney and Shetland was transferred to Scotland by KingChristian, then sovereign of the three Scandinavian kingdoms,in lieu of, or in pledge for, the dowry of the Princess of Denmark engaged by marriage treaty to King James IV. ;and
these islands may be truly said, in the language of Dr Barryto form valuable gems in the Scottish crown . For thereare no islands in the British Dominions of the same extentmore prosperous,more rapid in the progress of improvement,or having inhabitants more industrious,useful,and intelligent .
G
TRANSLATION OF THE M E S E H OW E INSCRIPTIO NS .
fl“The last is the original Runic inscriptions in our alphabet.The 2d the translation of it in m odern Northern or Danish.
PLAT E II.
No. I ..
THATIR V IKINGR A KOM VTIR KIRTIL.
Ehm r m kiugzr hom uhafil fnr at m sigom .
Thatir (the) V ikinghas com e to look out hither.
’
No. I I .
TH OLFB KO LBE IN S S ONR BE E ST RUNAR THE SAB HAUA.
Chalk fiolhaiasm ribsrhzhissi 5m m (pas) hm Sci.Tholfr Kolbainsson out these Runes (on) this cave.
Wrecked,and near this .
No. IV .
FUTH ORKH NI AS T BY NU.
Jaihcrk Instant tilgarb-O at.
Futhorkh bound to the North-East.“
No V .
W IM UNTR M IST.
ORKAS ONB SAH TH IA RUN OM THAIM IR HAN RISTU.
O ttawasatzhzhiss: 3m m om Shaina: hairribszhz.
O rkason sawed these Runes ;for Theim er he cut (them )!
“ See Notea.
50 TRANSLATION O F TH E M E S E H O W E INSCRIPTIONS .
PLAT E IV .
No. XI .
KNU’
I‘
RJE IST RUNAR TILE SAR O ER
ALFRE H URTH R S O NR.
No. XI I .
3iuuh rihszhzhiss: 3m m ohzrglfrzh (m )ti thigS ou.
TOTAR PIRLA RIE IST RUNAR THI SAR
Knut out these Runes over Alfred, (a) l ots: girth!rihszhzhiss: 3m m .
worthy son.
Totar Finlaout these Runes.
No. XIII .
o T o N MI RH '
IT ORB TIS TNIRA NOFROT UNAEF TA E H A SEKERE TAS NAM TART
.RI}E HTN1E RTLzE H TROF LOUB IF RAv SM
Gtbilligtgrim e atGains pm hzhzat fm hz Eorfiuhurts grshm Suns (zllrr S hh) man
sum ir at3. 0 . til 69. ha bar shjalt S hut sf stat Habit hzhaabgaugm .
A willingrecord that E rekes tried to discover Torfou his brother’
s house (or place) .It was thought that NE by E . there was hidden treasure ofgreat value at
the entrance- door.
No. XIV .
’
HAH u;‘Aof u;
‘AlueAseH gov NIAS E R SARMANR LATH GUNHUL RUBA AM INT NS Ro.
i nfrafinW asaw millrotsm am a S am ar: bar lahztfingshm grab: for
‘
S IH S IN V ova NI S SV INIm m v gam e30 .
The explorer Sarm anr, let the war-cave be
cut for the repose of M intu.
O r read from right to left
JORSALA M N A BURTU HAV C TH E NU.
azm salcm maahhats hm ht iahfilham : goi .
Jerusalem m en broke into this hill
See Notes .
TRANSLATION O F TH E M E S E H OW E INSCRIPTIONS. 5 1
PLATE V .
No. XV .
ARNFITHR M ATE RJE ISTRUNAR TH E ISAR.
M b: hm stake tihszhzhim 3m m .
Am fithr the Strong out these Runes.
’
N O . XV I .
(The ten h ee Runes give the wordsLIS AY R BNAY .
The Shield of the art of Tim e,
And represent the year A.D.
SAL FATHR E R RUNS TRE E FYRIB W AISTAN
Etihsrhztil tor saligJahzt him 31m :Em u (has hat)Jon : gas M et-3am .
Cut to our late Father these Rune Trees,(H e was a) leader on the West Sea.
No. XV I I .
H E RM UNTR HAR THAKS IR A TH INS RUN.
3m m gilm Gab igzlsznahhim 3m m .
H arm untgives thanks by‘
these Runes.
No. XV III.
m u THBIRI O H SEER AT IOCAR UKR TRzE NI LSONR FYRER SUNANLANT.
3srtutcgInstantm thatgist: S kiluti S tash Jam til Sghlaahzm .
H ere Tired and troubled, in repairing with difficulty the Ship, Nilson leader toSouthern Lands.
’ See Notes .
52 TRANSLATION O F TH E M E S E H O W E INSCRIPTIONS.
PLAT E v1.
S IA H OUIIR V AR FYRLATIIIN H E LAR S r: S hihrttar forlaht,TH E IR V ORO H
'
VATER SLIT vono ogS hrogtt liggtr hzr i Qm uhhtgzm tUT NORTH R ER FIFOL H IT M IKE L THALUR nm hgirth trgjzm t S hut 0gm angegala.
S IM ON S IH RRC, S im on S igbergS IHRITH . INRO INSO .
Behold the Ship was abandoned, andthe H ull lies there am ongthe breakers.
To the North is hidden treasure, and m any Dollars .
S im on S igbergS igred. In Boinso.
No. XX.
LOTH BRO C ARSY NAR H E NAR
M E N SE EM -TH E IR V ORO FY RAS IR
IORSALA FARAR BRUTU O RKO U BLIP MIT SAILIAIARI S
LOFO IR H IR VAR FIFO L HKET M IKIL RACISTS E LER SAIR FINA M ATHA A TH O GUS
’
I‘
H H IN M IRLA
OKONAKN BAR FIY RAR KITH I S W . I. N .
gdhhrcgaugust mulggggrligz3“: t emu hm nhuahntz til hon cgerm .
gcm salrm s gram sum strauhrhrgas O rhohrfiligpzr i Gang:bzhJorsiinum lsz. fit: but shjnlt S hattzr, m ange fijzhrr, tihszt
S i lt, tint O m am rutzr, 0gn ztgirobiaut.fijrm m - S trhrt liggzrbutts m ohw. tilg.
LothborgArsynar (they are) carefulM en who were appointed our com m anders.
Jerusalem leaders wrecked on the O rkney CliffsIn am ist slothfully.
H ere was hidden treasure;m any chains,
Cut silver, fine ornam ents, and m uch fine stores.
The hidden place lies out from thisW. by NNo. XXI .
T ARNFITIIR RAI ST RUNAR TH ISAR SOHR STAINS.
G gm fitlp’
rihsrhz (hissr) 3m m (ttttt) hurts S ou S hin.
T Arnfithr out (these) Runes (to his) son Stains.
TH RUNK
$1,31 1:t
No. XXI I .
THALK BABIST THANE RUNIER AND INGE S S E . L.
Chalk rihszhr hiss: m utt gianhangst;s l.
Dalk out these Runes (for the repose of the) Spiritand Soul of Inge.
See Notes.
TRAN SLATION O F TH E M E S E H OW E INSCRIPTION s . 53
PLAT E V II.
No. XXIII.
fitthnt I igzr for hm sum hluste atJm m tim rm r.
Arthur lookingout for the fairest ofWom en.
“
RAxITI UKR E IGRT A IIII.
Slothtaagrt Erin S hihti srhzihrrgam ht.
Dark m isty Weather. Ship labouringhard.
(The neatly cutDragon probably was engraved as aprivate signal to theNorthm en in som e of the ships- of-war of the royal squadrons ) “
No. XXV I .
I S IS IS .
(Doubtful )
(The Serpent-knot probably also refers to the arrival or departure of som e of the
Royal Squadrons—the largest ships beingnam ed Serpents.)—(See Description
of Sea-Fight.)
54 TRANSLATION O F TH E M E S E H O W E INSCRIPTIONS .
PLAT E V III.
No. XXV II. No. XXV III.
(M ight be m ade into) Lothbrog A. TH IR D .
No. XXIX.
D K II N K TH . M .
“
The ii n k ak a“
The first Runic letter represents the D of the
Waldem ar alphabet, said to he inventedby KingWaldem ar, who died in 1188.
No. XXXI . No. XXXII.
AIS III.’
No. XXXIII.
IXIX
An inscription not described am ongthose in M r Farrer’s book, but found inM esehowe.
See Notes.
56 NOTES.
string,and pointed it atWolf. Wolf cried, Shoot it in another direction,king,whereit can serve you better;m y work is your success.
KingOlaf stood on the poop,high above the others he bore ashield inlaid with gold,and had on ahelm et of beaten gold ;over his chain-arm our he wore ared jacket,and waseasily known from the others . E rik Jarl had alarge ship called I ran Beard (Jern Barder),which he was accustom ed to em ploy in his Viking expeditions;and there was an iron
railing on both sides of the stem ,and farther on there was athick iron plate, as broad as
the railing,which wentall the way alongto the m idships.Then the kings laid aside their oars,and began the attack. King Swend brought his
ship against the Long S erpent,and on the other side lay the Swedish kingOlaf’s ship,which was placed alongside of the m ost distant of King O laf Trygvesen’
s ships, and on
another side,E rik Jarl placed his. Here there was aSharp fight,which cost m any livesthe stem -fighters in the LongW ,
the Short Serp ent,and Crane, threw their hooks andtackles into King Swend’s ship,and m ade good use of their weapons against those opposedto them ,and in this way cleared all the ships that they could get fast to ;butKing Swendand the crews that were beaten flew out of their own to other ships,and thus placed themselves safe beyond the reach of their opponents’ weapons. King O laf,the Swedish king,was in the sam e plight : he lost m any of his people,and drew out of the battle;but E rikJarl laid his ship, the I ron Beard, side by side with the farthest of KingOlaf’s ships, Slewthe crew,and cut the cable,and let it drive away;then he went to the next ship,andfought until the crew was subdued, and so with others, the crews of the Danish and
Swedish ships fillingup the blanks in his crew.
At last,all King Olaf Trygvesen’s ships were defeated excepting the Long S erp ent, to
which ship all the arm ed m en who were left had com e from his other ships. Then the
I ron Beard was laid alongside of the Long S erp ent, and the battle was continued withswords . E rik Jarl was in the forepart of the ship,where there was put up adefence-shieldor covering. In the fight there were used weapons for hewingand spears for sticking,andalso every kind of arm s that could be thrown ;som e shotwith bows,and others threw darts.There were so m any weapons thrown into the S erp ent, there flew so m any darts and arrows,that the shields could with difliculty keep them off, for on every side the S erpent wassurrounded with the enem ies’ ships-of-war;and King O laf
’
s people becam e so furious that
they rushed towards the enem ies’ Ships to attack and kill the crews with their swords andspears. In this attem pt, m any of O laf’s m en went overboard,and sunk in the seawith their
weapons in their hands. The kinghad stood on the quarter-deck of the Long S erp ent thegreater part of the day, engaged som etim es in shootingwith the how,som etim es in throwing
darts—always throwingtwo of these atatim e. In lookingforward over his ship he saw hism en bravely strikingwith their swords,but atthe sam e tim ewith little efl
'
ect. H e then calledout loudly, W hy do you strike sogently with your swords;they do not seem to cut1
”One
of them answered,that theywere bluntand full of notches. O n this the kingwent downto the forehold, unlocked the chest under the high seat,and took out m any well-sharpened
NOTES. 57
swords,which he gave to his m en butwhen hewas reachingdown his right hand, som e of
his people saw that the blood was runningdown from the steel gauntlet, but they did not
know where the wound was.
The contestwent on furiously in the S erp ent, and the greatest loss of m en was causedby the warriors at the bows and in the forecastle because at both places chosen m en
had been placed, and there the ship’s sides were highest;but at m idships the peoplefell fast. As few m en were left near the ship’s m ast, E rik Jarl resolved there to enter
the ship with fourteen of his m en. H yrning, the king’
s brother-in-law, and som e
others, rushed to m eet them ,and fought so fiercely that the contest ended by the Jarlbeingdriven back to the I ran Beard,after som e of his m en had been slain,and others of
them wounded. The contest continued extrem ely hot,and m any m ore m en were slain in
the Serp ent. When Jarl saw that the crew of the Serp entwere fallingfast,and the defencem uch weakened, he resolved to board the Serp entasecond tim e,but still he m et with a
bold reception. The m en at the bows of the Serp ent, seeing this attack, ran aft, and
attacked Jer],and there m ade adeterm ined resistance. Butas there had already fallen so
m any of the S ewp ent’s crew, that som e parts of the ship’s sides were withoutdefenders,Jarl’sm en stepped on board from different quarters then all the m en rem aining of the crew to
defend the Serpent,endeavoured to get aft to where the king stood, so as to form aguard
around him . Kolbjom Stellar, or the king’s m arshal,who was clothed and arm ed like theking,and was an exceedingly big and handsom e m an,went up to the quarter-deck besidethe king,and the battle was now fiercestat this place. But as so m any of Jarl’s m en had
com e on board the S erpentas could find room ,and as his ships surrounded the S erpent onevery side,and as there were so few people left of the Serpent’s crew to fight against such
fearful odds, the greater part of the rest were soon slain,although they were both strong
and brave. O laf the king,and Kolbjom Staller, both sprung overboard, each on his sideof the ship,but E rik Jarl’s m en had placed sm all boats round the S erpent to kill or seize
all those who jum ped overboard. When the king sprang out they tried to lay hands onhim , so as to carry him toJar1;but King O laf litted his shield over his head,and sankunder the water. Kolbjom placed his Shield beneath to protect him self from the darts thatwere thrown from the ships which lay under the S erp ent,and so fell into the sea that his
shield cam e under him ,and he did not so quickly sink.
H e was thus taken and carried into the ship by the enem y’
s m en,who thought he was
the king,and brought him to E rik Jarl butwhen he found itwas Kolbjom and notKing
Olaf,he gave him his life.
At the sam e tim e all the rest of the crew of the S erp entwho rem ained alive sprung overboard,and the king
’
s brother,Thirkel Nefia,was the last m an who left the ship.
The victory was so com plete that Norway becam e subjected to the Danish and Swedishkings and E rik Jarl,who divided the country into three governm ents,each Obtainingapart.E rik Jarl also obtained the LongSerpentwith alarge booty.
58 N O TE S .
N 0 . IV .
This inscription is evidently m eant to inform som e com panions in another ship, or otherships, of the fact that the inscriber was bound hom eward. The position of the letters
of the Runic alphabet is always
but in the inscription h,ur, U is given twice,
two of the principal letters,are om itted in the inscripand Y ,
tion, and we m ay therefore suppose that the ship or person represented in these letters,
Furnom m ,was bound to the north-east nam ely,returninghom e.
No. V.
W e do notrem em berto have seen this nam e ofW im und in any of the S candinavian Sagas;
but between the years 1141 and 1151,an individual of the nam e ofW im und is m entionedas being of asuperior education,and that he was at first am onk in the I sle of M an,after
wards pretended to be the son ofAngus,Earl of M oray,and m arriedadaughterof Som erled,
Thane ofArgyle,and collectingbands ofadventurers, m ade predatory excurs ions with shipsinto the neighbouring islands,and also on the Scottish coasts ;and although King Davidsentan arm y against him ,
he eluded any attem pts to capture him ,and David had to m akepeace with him but his followers, ultim ately tired of his oppressive conduct,gave him up
to KingDavid,and he was im prisoned atRoxburgh. As W im und was am an of education,it is alm ost probable that this inscription is by his own hand, seeing that the Orkneys atthat tim e were the headquarters for such predatory bands;and if so, the date of the
inscriptions m ust,accordingto Fordun, be between 1140 and 1151.—S ee Fordun, viii. 2,
and Dalrym p le’
s Annals, 86.
No. V I .
O m Thaim er m ay also be translated In the dark, from Tham adr, obscurus, darkness,Icelandic. S om e of the letters, such as the lastR in the inscription,have the appearanceofwant of lightwhen the letters were inscribed.
NOTE S . 59
No. V I I .
The Ingeborg m entioned in the inscription was probably the Danish or Norwegian
princess, the wife of Thorfin,whom Earl Ronald had driven out of the O rkneys,and whohad taken refuge in Caithness. She m ay have com e to Orkney,and taken refuge in the
cave before Thorfin had acquired strength.
When Thorfin, the husband of Ingeborg,was earl,Ronald was created earl by M agnus,kingof Norway,and cam e over to Orkney to claim from Thorfin his third share of the
governm ent,as the son ofBruscius. Atfirst the twowere reconciled,and engaged together inseveral expeditions but havingafterwards quarrelled,Ronald was defeated in a sea-fight,
and retired to Caithness, but returned and succeeded in driving Earl Thorfin from the
governm ent of Orkney. However, soon afterwards,when Ronald cam e to Papey W estray,where he had gone to buy m alt to prepare ale for his Y ule feast,he was suddenly waylaid,attacked by Thorfin,and he and all his people slain.
Thorfin havingafterwards gone to Rom e on apilgrim age,was received with m uch distinc
tion by the Pope,and havingreturned to Orkney, lived aquiet life atBirsa,and there diedat the age of 75,and was succeeded by Paul and E rland, sons of his Princess Ingeborg,in 1064.
This princess, ithas been stated,was afterwards m arried to King M alcolm the Third of
Scotland but this appears erroneous. Ingeborgm ust have been,when her husband died,at the age of 75 in 1064,avery unlikely person, either as to age or rank, to be chosen the
queen of such ayoung sovereign as M alcolm the Third then was. Now M alcolm the Third,called Caenm ore,was only crowned at Scoon on the 25thApril 1057 was solem nly betrothedto the Princess M argaret of England, sister ofKingE dgar, in 1067,t and the nuptials tookplacewith this Princess,atDunferm line in 1070;1 so that the statem ent,m ade by Dr Barryin his H istory of Orkney,m ust have arisen from som e m istake.It is worth noting, that aprincess of the sam e nam e, Ingeborg,was interred at Thirug,
near Hoby,havingthe followingLatin inscription in Runi‘c letters upon her m onum ent :
IngeborgfiliaAm unti jacot hic,
which appears to be the only old sepulchral inscription in Runes,as far as we have had anopportunity of knowing, in the Latin language.
This has the appearance, from its indistinctness, of beingone of the oldest of the inscriptions, and records the circum stance of the building having been strengthened,and the
surrounding fosse or ditch cut round the buildingby the person nam ed.
Fordun, b. v., c. 9. 1 H orodca, p. 226. I Fordun,b. v ., c. 17 .
60 NO TE S .
N 0 . IX.
Although this is ashort inscription, it is arem arkable one,whether the Troldm and was
an official in som e of the Viking expeditions, accom panied som e ships of the royalsquadrons, or becam e an inm ate of the howe for the purpose of exercising the black art, isdoubtful. The sm all figure,as of ahorse,appears hardly worth noticing;butwhen it is
considered that this figure has eight feet or legs, one m ay readily suppose that it is m eant
to be an em blem of the m agic art of Thorer,because one of the m ost prom inent anim alsm entioned in the northern m ythology, is Sleipne, O din’
s wonderful horse,which was represented to be the quickest horse in the world, and to have eight feet or legs. The crossunder the inscription has the appearance of having been cut longafter the inscription,andprobably for the purpose of undoingthe influence of thewizard and his horse.
No. X.
Thereare two inscriptions on this stone. The first is also astrongproof thatthe voyagersat the tim e were pagans. I t plainly tells us that the Vikings had asuccessful expedition,and that Thor had favoured them and probably the second inscription is written by thesam e hand as m ay be supposed from the sim ilarity of the R’
s in both.
N o. XL
This is the only inscription discovered in M esehowe im plying sepulture, and alm ost
confirm atory of this is the circum stance that it is engraved on one of the upright pillars,the m ost suitable for asepulchral m onum ent,and perhaps the rem ains m ay be found im m e
diately under the inscription : the firstword, Knut,”is doubtful,as that part of the inscrip
tion is defaced.
No. XI I .
The Toter Finla, in the inscription No. 12, is probably the Finla m entioned by Fordun,who states that the usurper of the Scottish throne,M acbeth,who was slain atLum phanan,5th Decem ber 1056,was the son of Fenele or Finlay,Lib. v., cap. 49 so that this was
probably arelation of M acbeth, and had joined the Northm en in their predatory excursions.
No. XI]1
I s a very rem arkable inscription, cut on one of the upright pillars in the cave, in its
NOTE S . 61
which had been conwaled. I t m ightbe considered im prudentto divulge by such an inscription the concealm ent;but the search had been unsuccessful,and som e of the com panionfreebooters m ight be afterwards successful, and restore the treasure;and no doubt thenum ber of those who wrote and could read the inscriptions would be sm all,and confined
to the superior officers of each ship.
Is on another upright pillar, and appears to be, or to have been, in the first place,twoinscriptions ;the one from left to right, m uch defaced : and the other one m ore recent,
reading from right to left, with the letters different from the inscription 13, in so far that
they have the position as if proceeding from left to right;while the letters in 13face the
left, these face the right,with the exception of the second letter. The oldest or first inscription appears to have been altered or written upon by the inscriber from the right side.
attention. It not only exhibits a. peculiar style of writing,but inculcates am oral precept,which none of the other inscriptions does
No. XV I .
I s apious record of the sons to their late father,who had probably died on an expedition.
The tree Runes are very rem arkable in their form , and record, doubtless,the year of thedeath of the father.
—S ee V ocabulary.
This inscription records the gratitude of one of the voyagers nam ed H arm unt, who hadbeen successful in his expedition,or escaped danger. It is rem arkable in being the onlyone where the longdouble-angled S is used ;and we m ay suppose that H arm untwas eitheraSwede or Dane, this S beingm ore generally used in their Runic inscriptions.
Describes the trouble of one of the voyagers in getting his ship repaired, which was them ore necessary as he seem ed to have com e from , or was bound on,a long voyage. The
word Sunanlant,m eaningeitherAfricaor S icily.
Nos. XIX. and XX.
Are the m ost am ple inscriptions, and are placed together in the building. They are in
juxtaposition, but they allude to different shipwrecks and different circum stances. The one
ship or fleet was wrecked on the cliffs in a m ist, in the Bay of Skaill probably, and
62 NOTE S .
was likely the ship or ships from which the silver treasure had been saved and hid,which are now in the M useum . The other ship was lost and left am ong the breakers, in
broken water to the north of M esehowe,probably on Rowsay,”
as one of the wordsm ay im ply;the other,“westby north of M esehowe. The one had m uch treasure,consistingof m oney the other had saved the treasure,and hid it, consisting of chains, cut silver,
fine ornam ents. &c. and the situation of the place where the treasure is hid is m entioned.The one says that the ship was lost, through carelessness, in am ist, by the com m anders,Lothbrogand Arsyner the other does not appear to have been lost from any fault of the
com m anders, whose nam es appear to have been S im on S igberg and S igred. As to the
treasure, there can be no doubt that when the Vikings were returning from their predatoryexpeditions they were subject to considerable dangers—such as being wrecked, beingattacked by their own or other sovereigns,by other pirates, or by a superior force of thenatives . Under such circum stances, the pirates who m ight escape would doubtlessendeavour to get the plunder put into aplace of safety or security,hidden in such placesas only could be known to them selves,whither they could return with other ships or fleets,when fortune was m ore favourable, to recover the hidden treasure.
S ILVE R ORNAM E NTS AND CO IN S FOUND NEAR THE BAY O F SKAI LL.
W e have in the M esehowe three separate inscriptions referringto the loss or concealm entO f treasure. O ne says,north
-eastby east from the howe itwas thoughtthat there was hiddentreasure, near the entrance-door another says, “to the north,” or towards north, is m uch
treasure and dollars and athird says, “the hidden place lies out from this west by north.
”
M artin, in his Deecmptz'
on of the I slands of S cotland, says that fibula: of silver have beenfound in Orkney, near this place and Brand, in his Descrip tion, says that nine fibulee ofsilver were found near this. But the largest and m ost valuable discovery of this kind wasm ade on the 1 1th M arch 1858,ahook and afew fragm ents having been picked up by aboy the previous week at the m outh of arabbit-hole,which led to the finding of the rest of
the treasure. The treasure had been buried between the parish church and theBurn ofRin,
and ashort distance from the shore or the Bay Of Skaill, in the parish of Sandwick, in the
m ainland of Orkney,which place m ay be said to agree with the second-
quoted points of thecom pass as bearing from M esehowe and those having been carefully collected from the
peasantry and others,who had obtained possession of them , the whole was delivered to our
National M useum through the Honourable the Sheriff of Orkney,J. E dm ondstone Aytoun,
E sq . This valuable illustration of the habits of the people of a form er age, consists ofnine large silver ringbrooches, m ostly with bulbous ends,and tongues with bulbous heads,all of these ends and heads tastefully cut and ornam ented eight funicular tom s of silver,
seven silver arm illae, twenty-five penannular rings or bracelets of various form s,several
fragm ents and ingots of silver;and also,whatwas of great im portance in fixingthe age of
the articles,here were found the followingcoins
64 NOTE S .
dwellers in Caithness as paym ent for their safety ;the inhabitants of the surroundinglandswere afraid of the arm our-clad heroes,the seizers of rings.
"
A sim ilar discovery of hidden treasure was m ade at V aalse, Falster, Denm ark, in the
springof 1835,by aploughm an,whose plough struck am etal box,under the surface,abouttwenty yards from the sea-shore. Itconsisted of several bars or ingots of silver,broken rings,arm illm , torcs, m iscellaneous fragm ents,and 493coins,agreat m any of which were Easternor Cufic, m any E uropean, several of which are E nglish of E dm und and E dgar, the latestbeing of E thelred, 979 and 1017 and the latest of the Cufic coins is dated 361 afterthe Hegiraor 971—2 of the Christian era, so that the probability is that the treasure hadbeen concealed about the end of the l0th century.It is rem arkable that in this large collection of ornam ents and coins,thereare no brooches
sim ilar to the brooches found in Orkney,and am ongthe great num ber of coins,no Danish,Swedish,or Norwegian coins.This treasure had been also in all probability concealed by som e of the Vikings,who m ay
have been shipwrecked on the coast,or driven on shore by an enem y.The frontispiece of the present work, as already stated, represents the treasure foundwest by north of M esehowe; the whole of the treasure was photographed byCum m ing,and afterwards carefully lithographed by M essrs Johnston, so that each article isrepresented in its relative size accordingto the scale, and the treasure m ay be now seen in
the Collection of the S ociety ofAntiquaries of Scotland
Is the m ost beautiful,and,at the sam e tim e, the m ost difi cult of all the inscriptions .
Has acurious figure resem blingthe upper part of aseal or otter holdingafish in its m outh
the inscription denotes alove engagem ent.
Refers to the dangerous situation of one of the ships,and is left unfinished.
V erelius,in his Ranographia,gives the representation of two dragons on two stone m onu
m eats in Sweden,with the words on one of the m onum ents
4M YIY I 4k4V4fl iz ’ Two Good Dm cona
NOTE S . 65
large ships-of-war nam ed Dragons . These two in V erelius have aclose resem blance to thisone in M esehowe.
-Vide Runographz'
a, cap. viii. page 60.
No. XXVI .
The Serpent-knot,as well as the Dragon,probably im plied the arrival,and the departurein the direction to which they pointed, of som e of the large ships-of-war of som e of the
northern sovereigns ;and we therefore the m ore willingly gave a short account of the
expeditions of the northern sovereigns and (in illustration of the m ode ofwarfare and theform of the ships) the account of the rem arkable sea-battle between KingO laf Trygvesenand the Danish and Swedish sovereigns,joined with E rikJarl.
Is the inscription not described in M r Ferrer’s publication, and has the word Ikik,
Looking out,”
or O n the watch,”the sam e which begins the inscription of No. 24.
This is evidently an unfinished inscription.
VOCABULARY OF DOUBTFUL AND DIFFICULT
WORDS.
N o. I .
UTIR at vitia, invisere,m ean ,to see or visit,Norrcenic.
N0 . II I .
BRAH,at briika,frangere,brake orwrecked, Nor.
THANA, Thannug,Thangar, illuc, there, or near this,Nor.
N,Nord,northI,preposition to nam ely,together “ to the north-east, Nor.
AST,Austr, orientam versus, towards eastBY NU,at buna, scatere, bound, or hastening,Nor.
N 0 . V I .
SAILat saga, secare, cut or sawed,Nor.
TE AM ER m ay m ean also TH AM ADR, obscuras, in the dark,Nor.
No. V II .
AH GIA,Ahyggia, solicitado, cam ,in distress, or in fear,Nor.
KOCKA, coquero, boiling,Nor.
OFLATE ,hoim odig,hopeful,N or.
The Tree Runes,while representing letters of the Alphabet,are here used to give alsothe date or year. For instance, the first,with the transverse line, represents 1000and the others (their value added together) m ake up the year 1063.
—See OlausW orm ius
’
Fad es Danica,&c.
68 V OCABULARY O F DOUBTFUL AND D IFFI CULT W ORDS .
The Tree Runes in Plate IIL, therefore, in the order in which they stand , give these
No. VIII .
N IASR,hnias, cam lorare,niosnari, exp lorator,an explorer,Nor.
SKURIR,at skora, incldere, cut in or round,Nor.
FALE N,fallinn, dispositus, properly,Nor.
KIABI,gopi, cavitas, cave,Nor.KSV IL, skyla,um bra, dark or hidden,Nor.
SOM ALE,at som e,as bene genera,to do well, or put in order,Nor.
No. IX.
VOM IR, V om r v. V om adr Troldm and,M agus,wizard,Nor.
NY SE ETH ,at hnyssa,favera, to favour or sm ile,Nor.
No. X].
URTHR,V erdugr,V arrder, dignas,worthy,Nor.
THAT,Thogd,gratia, favour,Nor.
AH E ,atage, ewerceo, to try or endeavour,Nor.
E EANU,at finna, tnvem'
re,to find,Nor.
AH INT,arin,focus dom esticus,house or place,Nor.
AHE ,Act.
IM INIAS S,him neskr, ccelestis,heavenly,Nor.
No. XV .
M ATE ,m attr,m'
e,potentia, strong,Nor.
V OCABULARY O F DOUBTFUL AND D IFFI CULT W ORDS .
SAL, saladr, vitadefunctus, late or dead, N or.
The Trees represent certain letters and figures,as before stated,the followingm ake upthe year to A.D. 1 1 13 :
a y
10 16 : 1 113
No. XVI I .TH AKS IB, tak ~siger, thanks,Danish or Norsk.
N o. XVI I I .
M E TH,at m ade, defetiscere, tired, Nor.
SE ER, at syrgia, lagers,troubled, Nor.
IGOAR,Utgiore, concludere,finish or repair,Nor.
SUNANLANT, southlands,Africa, S icily,&c.
—Egilson’
s P oetical Dictionary.
No. XIX.
SLIT, rup tura,broken. Nor.
FI, fe,pecunia, m oney or treasure,Nor.
FO L, folga,hidden,Nor.
H O UH R,hufr,navis,Nor.
HOUK, aship,Jam ieson’s S cottish Dictionary.
The m eikle houk bym bare was Triton callit. - Douglas’s V irgil,321, 55 .
COGUE S : Roger ofWendover says, Sweyn, king of the Danes,and Anluf of Norwav
arrived at London with 94CO GUE S,and m ade afearful assault on it.KUGG : Sogdo atKUGG einn rak frem an at festom said that aship was drivingagainst
the cable—King H aco’
s Voyage, Flateyan and Frisian M S S .
NO . XX.
SAI LIARIS , sioloegia, nebulapelagica, m ist at sea,Nor.
LOFO IR, l'
i a, sloth, Sw.
H KET,ket, chain, Sw.
No. XXI I I .
IXIX,to keek, on the outlook, to look out, Scottish.
V E NSTA, V E N,form osus,fair,Nor.
70 V OCABULARY or DOUBTFUL AND D IFFI CULT W ORDS .
No. XXIV.
BAKITI,Bakk i, nubilum pelagicum , m ist on the sea,Nor.
E IGRT, egra, m ove heavily,Nor.
UKR,ship,Jam ieson’
s S cottish Dictionary.
XXV I IL
4. AWaldem ar Rune of 12th century,our letter D.
N o. XXXI I I .
IKIK, looking out,Nor.
This is anew inscription,and not given in M r Farler’s Translations .
