28 August 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

‘World’s oldest dated rune stone’ found in Norway

The oldest known Rune stone in Norway has been discovered by Norwegian archaeologists working at the Museum of Cultural History in Oslo.

Sometime between 1,800 and 2,000 years ago, someone that spoke an early form of the ancient Nordic language stood near Tyrifjorden, west of Oslo, and carved runes into a flat, square block of reddish-brown sandstone, the Museum of Cultural History in Oslo said in a statement Tuesday.

The 30 by 30 centimeter (12 by 12 inch) square brown sandstone rock was discovered during the excavation of an ancient burial ground in late 2021, northwest of Oslo, ahead of the construction of a railway line.

Carbon dating of bones and wood found in a grave beside the rune suggest that it was inscribed sometime between year one and 250 AD, Oslo’s Museum of Cultural History said.

The runestone is made from reddish-brown Ringeriks sandstone and has been named after the place of its discovery, Svingerudsteinen.

Photo: Alexis Pantos/KHM, UiO

Eight runes that have been deciphered as the words Idiberug, Idibergu, Idiberga, or Idiberung in a Proto-Germanic language that predates Old Norse are carved into the stone.

Professor Kristel Zilmer, from the Cultural History Museum, University of Oslo, said: “The text possibly refers to a woman called Idibera, and the inscription may mean “For Idibera”. Other possibilities are that idiberug reproduces a name such as Idibergu/Idiberga, or perhaps the family name Idiberung.”

Runes first appeared in the 2nd century AD and continued through the Viking Age and late Middle Ages. When the Scandinavian peoples were Christianized around AD 700 in central Europe and AD 1100 in northern Europe, runes were generally replaced by the Latin alphabet

Around 30 runestones from the Iron Age were discovered in Norway. Several thousand stones with runic inscriptions from the Viking Age have survived in Scandinavia. Early runic inscriptions developed in Scandinavia as a result of cultural contact; the Roman Latin alphabet may have served as a model.

KHM

Related Articles

“Cardiff’s earliest house” unearthed during an archaeological dig may shed light on the city’s earliest inhabitants

15 July 2022

15 July 2022

Archaeological excavation in a city park in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, has uncovered what is believed to be the...

One-of-a-kind 1000- years-old gold earring found in Denmark

13 December 2021

13 December 2021

A metal detectorist in Denmark uncovered a one-of-a-kind piece of 11th-century gold jewelry that had never been seen in Scandinavia...

A wash-basin decorated with 2500-year-old Mythological creatures and Chariot races was discovered in Izmir, Turkey

28 September 2022

28 September 2022

Unique ceramic figures were discovered in the excavations carried out this year in the ancient city of Klazomenai in the...

1000-Year-Old Tomb Found in Perre Ancient City in southeast Turkey

1 July 2021

1 July 2021

A 1,000-year-old tomb was unearthed in the ancient city of Perre in Adiyaman province. Perre is one of the five...

On the beach of Herculaneum, a victim of the Vesuvius explosion was discovered with his bag

4 December 2021

4 December 2021

Archaeologists released haunting images Wednesday of the skeletal remains of a man buried by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in...

Bronze Age and Roman-era settlements unearthed in Newquay

10 April 2023

10 April 2023

Archaeologists from the Cornwall Archaeological have uncovered ancient dwellings from the Bronze Age and a Roman period settlement in Newquay,...

7,000-Year-Old Canoes Reveal Early Development of Nautical Technology in Mediterranean

21 March 2024

21 March 2024

The discovery of five “technologically sophisticated” canoes in Italy has revealed that  Neolithic people were navigating the Mediterranean more than...

New study: Human brains preserve in diverse environments for at least 12 000 years

21 March 2024

21 March 2024

A study by forensic anthropologist Alexandra Morton-Hayward and her team from the University of Oxford has shown that the human...

Mystery of Knaresborough Roman hoard revealed by Newcastle experts

13 January 2024

13 January 2024

Archaeologists at Newcastle University have investigated one of the most unusual late-Roman metalware ever discovered in the British Isles. Although...

1,300-year-old shipwreck found in southwest France

19 June 2022

19 June 2022

Archeologists in France have discovered the wreck of a ship that navigated the Garonne river in southwestern France in the...

Evidence of Rare Romano-Celtic Temple Near Lancaster Castle -may be only the second of its type –

10 March 2023

10 March 2023

A study exercise for students from Lancaster University has uncovered a Romano-Celtic temple, only the second of its type in...

Rare clay figurine found in Italian Cave dating back 7000 years

26 July 2023

26 July 2023

Archaeologists from Sapienza University of Rome discovered a figure with female features in the Battifratta cave, near Poggio Nativo in...

Analysis of Butchered Bones, Somerset Pit Reveals Bronze Age Cannibalism

17 December 2024

17 December 2024

Archaeologists have uncovered the bloodiest massacre in early Bronze Age Britain and evidence of Bronze Age cannibalism. It is the...

Researchers Found Evidence in Ethiopia of a Human Population that Survived the Eruption of the Toba Supervolcano 74,000 Years Ago

22 March 2024

22 March 2024

Researchers working in the Horn of Africa, also known as the Somali Peninsula have uncovered evidence showing how Middle Stone...

4,500-Year-Old Dog Teeth-Adorned Bags Found in Germany May Have Been Elite Baby Carriers

11 July 2025

11 July 2025

Archaeological excavations near Krauschwitz reveal rare decorated leather bags buried with women and infants—shining new light on Neolithic burial customs...