The Kvinneby amulet (Öl SAS1989;43 ) is an 11th century runic amulet which was found in the mid-1950's in the soil of the village Södra Kvinneby in Öland, Sweden. The amulet is a square copper object measuring approximately 5 cm on each side. Near one edge there is a small hole, presumably used for hanging it around the neck.
The inscription consists of some 143 runes, written boustrophedon, supplemented by an engraving of a fish. It is unclear w...
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The Kvinneby amulet (Öl SAS1989;43 ) is an 11th century runic amulet which was found in the mid-1950's in the soil of the village Södra Kvinneby in Öland, Sweden. The amulet is a square copper object measuring approximately 5 cm on each side. Near one edge there is a small hole, presumably used for hanging it around the neck.
The inscription consists of some 143 runes, written boustrophedon, supplemented by an engraving of a fish. It is unclear what relevance the fish has to the text.
The inscription is one of the longest and best preserved for its time but it has proven hard to interpret. The "official" Rundata interpretation is:
Here I carve(d) protection for you, Bófi, with/... ... ... to you is certain. And may the lightning hold all evil away from Bófi. May Þórr protect him with that hammer which came from out of the sea. Flee from evilness! You/it get/gets nothing from Bófi. The gods are under him and over him.
There have been five other serious attempts to decipher the text....
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