Thursday, March 27, 2025

Ingvar led a large Viking expedition to the east, into what is now Russia, where it met disaster (giving food the eagles means the birds were feasting on their corpses). We only know of it because of these stones, of which there are surprisingly many in Sweden.

 


Sö 179, one of the Ingvar Stones.

The transcription reads:

× tula : lit : raisa : stain : þinsa| |at : sun : sin : haralt : bruþur : inkuars : þaiʀ furu : trikila : fiari : at : kuli : auk : a:ustarla| |ar:ni : kafu : tuu : sunar:la : a sirk:lan:ti

Which, transliterated into accepted Old East Norse orthography, reads:

Tōla lēt ræisa stæin þennsa at sun sinn Harald, brōður Ingvars. Þæiʀ fōru drængila fiarri at gulli ok austarla ærni gāfu, dōu sunnarla ą̄ Særklandi.

Translated to English:

“Tóla had this stone raised in memory of her son Haraldr, Ingvarr's brother. They travelled manfully far for gold, and in the east gave (food) to the eagle. (They) died in the south in Serkland.”


3 comments:

  1. Being both brave and bold, and willing to take a risk for glory. It's a man thing; Gen Z doesn't understand.

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    Replies
    1. Aye, yes! They died as men should, holding a broken but bloody sword, and feeding the eagles with their bodies.

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