Karlevi Runestone
runestone
The Karlevi Runestone, designated as Öl 1 by Rundata, is commonly dated to the late 10th century and located near the Kalmarsund straight in Karlevi on the island of Öland, Sweden. It is one of the most notable and prominent runestones and constitutes the oldest record of a stanza of skaldic verse.
Description
The runic inscription on the Karlevi Runestone is partly in prose, partly in verse. It is the only example of a complete scaldic stanza preserved on a runestone and is composed in the "lordly meter" the dróttkvætt. It is notable for mentioning Thor's daughter Þrúðr and Viðurr, one of the names for Odin, in kennings for "chieftain." In the second half of the stanza a reference is made to Denmark, but it is not clear what exactly this means in this poetic context.
The stone is contemporary with the Battle of the Fýrisvellir and it is consequently possible that the stone was raised by warriors who partook in it, in memory of their lord.
The inscription, which is on a granite stone that is 1.4 meters in height, is classified as being in runestone style RAK. This is the classification with inscriptions with runic text in bands that have no attached dragon or serpent heads and the ends of the runic bands are straight. The non-runic inscription on the reverse side appears to be accompanied by a small Christian cross and a Norse pagan Thor's hammer, or Mjöllnir. Other surviving runestones or inscriptions depicting Thor's hammer include runestones U 1161 in Altuna, Sö 86 in Åby, Sö 111 in Stenkvista, Vg 113 in Lärkegapet, DR 26 in Laeborg, DR 48 in Hanning, DR 120 in Spentrup, and DR 331 in Gårdstånga.
Inscription
Transliteration of the runes into Latin characters, and transcription into Old Norse (the Swedish-Danish dialect):
The latter part of the inscription is metrical, and represents the following stanza:
In literal translation:
The tree of enmities of Þrúðr <valkyrja> [BATTLES > WARRIOR] whom the greatest deeds followed lies concealed in this mound; most men knew that.
“Karlevi Runestone” enters the record as runestone. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Karlevi, Runestone and runestone can confirm, complicate or overturn.
Why this record matters
“Karlevi Runestone” is worth following because a concise public description often conceals a longer documentary argument. Here, Karlevi, Runestone and runestone provides the most credible route into that argument.
The citation trail is more important than the brevity of the summary: it shows where individual claims can be examined in context. The source revision retrieved here is dated Aug 16, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q1506388. Authority coordinates are 56.608, 16.440. 2 of 3 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 1 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1161.
A concise general-reference account can conceal disagreements about scope, terminology or the weight assigned to individual sources. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Use the entry as an orientation point, then follow its citations and revision history. Names, dates and institutional relationships should be checked against the original record.
- Subject orientation
- Search vocabulary
- Locating named sources
The closest primary source, responsible institution and strongest cited specialist reference.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Karlevi Runestone”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Karlevi Runestone primary sources, Karlevi Runestone archive and Karlevi research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Karlevi Runestone”?
- Which cited source is closest to the event, object or claim?
- Which institution is responsible for the underlying evidence?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Karlevi Runestone” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.