Terje Spurkland, Norwegian Runes and Runic Inscriptions. Betsy van der Hoek, trans. Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2005. ISBN no. 1 84383 186 4. £ 25.00 / $47.95.

This little volume will surely draw comparisons to two other classics of runic scholarship, Erik Moltke’s Runes and Their Origin: Denmark and Elsewhere, and Sven B. F. Jansson’s The Runes of Sweden. Like Moltke and Jansson before him, Spurkland presents a serious and useful overview of the modern scholarly understanding of runes and runic inscriptions, with the primary focus on finds in his own country. Unlike Moltke, Spurkland is reluctant to advance his own novel theories, nor has he compiled a catalogue of all the inscriptions found in Norway. Still, if this were the only serious book on runes someone ever read, that person would come away better informed than the vast majority of people who consider themselves knowledgeable on this topic.

In a mere 206 pages (still substantially longer than Jansson’s famous work), the author covers a surprising range of topics in some depth. Unfortunately, his treatment of the origin of the runes does not fall into that category, being too brief and inconclusive to convey much understanding of this complex and fascinating question. Spurkland does somewhat better in reviewing the characteristics of the futhark and the names and meanings of the individual runes, although his watchword is caution above all, often leaving the reader wondering if he has drawn any conclusions at all from the evidence he reviews.

Spurkland hits his stride in the third chapter, “Runic Inscriptions in the Elder Futhark,” in which he investigates an array of ancient, proto-Scandinavian inscriptions. This chapter covers the Gallehus horn, the Tjurkö bracteate, the Strøm whetstone, and other colorful and somewhat mysterious objects, always with an eye to tracing the development and evolution of rune-carving as a communicative medium. Digressions consider such questions as the identity of the early runesmiths, and phonological issues raised by the inscriptions and their interpretations.

The Eggja stone is considered in a separate chapter, in which Spurkland reviews the radical shifts in its interpretation by successive generations of scholars. His own conclusion: rather than giving documentary evidence of an ancient blood-sacrifice, this monument “is not only Norway’s first report of a capsized boat, but also Norway’s oldest evidence of a sailing vessel” (p. 71).

Subsequent chapters cover the linguistic change that led to the introduction of the younger futhark, and the technical and interpretive issues associated with that restructuring. This leads naturally into a longish (45-page) review of Viking-Age runic inscriptions. The book concludes by documenting the continued use of runes well into the Christian Middle Ages, and their eventual decline. Each chapter is accompanied by a short reading list focused on that topic, and the book has a concise but functional index.

Some readers may wish Spurkland devoted more attention to the ancient magical and religious uses of runes, but that was not his main intention. Like many, perhaps most, contemporary runologists, Spurkland acknowledges that such uses existed, and considers cases in which particular inscriptions seem to carry a magical or religious function. Nevertheless, aside from an occasional reference to Hávamál (not indexed), Völuspá, and the sagas, Spurkland’s focus is overwhelmingly on the secular uses and evolution of the runic script.


Reviewed by R. S. Radford
(c) 2006.  All rights reserved.  Reproduction of this review in any form, in whole or in part, without express written permission is prohibited.