EGGJUM STONE

inscribed stone that bears 200 runic characters. It is the longest known text in the old-style futhark (runic alphabet) and was discovered inside a tomb in western Norway in 1917. The runes are arranged in three unequal lines, separated by an engraving of a stylized horse's head. The date is uncertain; archaeologists place it in the 7th century, whereas runologists, citing transitional rune forms and the relatively modern language of the sample, estimate the 8th or even the 9th century. Parallel constructions and alliterations appear in the text, which remains enigmatic. Only a few passages are clear; among these is a statement that the stone is not illuminated by the Sun and has not been carved with a knife. There is also a probable conjuration and an explanation of the death of the person in the tomb.