Let’s focus on what’s really carved in stone. Not guesses, not romantic Victorian ideas. Just what endures: names, titles, symbols. When the thread needed to shout, it etched itself into rock.

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The Gotland Picture Stones

On Gotland, tall picture stones predate the Viking Age. They depict ships, animals, and figures seated above others—cloaked, veiled, often holding staffs. These are not simple decorative scenes. The recurring posture and staff imagery strongly indicate they represent ritual women—likely völur—serving as psychopomp or fate-weaver figures. (Source: Children of Ash and Elm by Neil Price; Roles of the Northern Goddess by H. E. Davidson)

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Odendisa Runestone (Vs 24), Sweden

Raised circa 1050 CE and carved by the renowned runemaster Red-Balli, this stone honors Odendisa—her name literally means “Lady of Odin.” It praises her as the finest housewife in the land, a title with deep ritual and societal resonance. This is the only Swedish runestone to include a metrically composed verse for a woman. (Source: Jesch, Women in the Viking Age Wikipedia+5Wikipedia+5Wikipedia+5)

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Saleby Runestone (Vg 67), Sweden

Erected by Freysteinn in memory of his wife Þóra, it includes a curse against anyone who defaces the stone—branding the defiler a “wretch” or “warlock” (argʀi konu). The term carries echoes of ergi and the stigma of sorcery. This is a direct linguistic link between female memory and accused magical power. (Source: Runes and their Origin, Erik Moltke; What Is a Kona?, Johanna Vos) Wikipedia

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Ålum Runestone (DR 97), Denmark

Raised by Þyrvé, wife of Végautr, the inscription honors her memory and her care for her cousin Þorbjǫrn. This is one of the few runestones that showcases a woman’s name carved as the sponsor of the monument demonstrating female agency in memorial culture. (Source: Women in the Viking Age by Judith Jesch; DR 97 record) Sons of Vikings+13Wikipedia+13National Museum of Denmark+13

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Fölene Runestone (Vg 154), Sweden

Commissioned by Ásfríðr in memory of her husband Ásgeirr, described as a “very good valiant man.” While not ritual in content, it’s notable as one of the relatively few stones where we know a woman led the commissioning and left her name in stone.
(Source: Rundata; Vg 154 inscription records) National Museum of Denmark+5Wikipedia+5Wikipedia+5

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Skjern Stone (Vg unknown), Denmark

Referenced in discussions of seiðmen, the Skjern Stone warns **“whoever breaks this monument is a seiðman” linking ruin of memory with sorcerous accusation. It’s an example of how runestones themselves were used to police magical roles.
(Source: Reddit discussion quoting runic curse) Wikipedia+10reddit.com+10TheWarriorLodge+10

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What We See—Carved Loud and Clear

• Female names and titles commemorated in verse

• References to curse words tied to sorcery or gendered magic (argʀi, seiðman)

• Seated figures with staffs on picture stones—possible völur representations

• Stones raised by women, during a time when that was rare

• Staff imagery woven into runic and decorative art

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What We Say, The Stones Speak Too

Some modern interpretive plaques soften these stories. They call them “a friendly greeting” or a “motherly presence.” But the stones don’t whisper that. They declare names and titles. They warn of curses. They set figures above others.

Why?
Because the people carving these stones wanted us to remember. They memorialized presence, power, and sometimes fear.

Want to walk the story behind the staff symbol, the picture stones, and carved curses? I break it all down in my blog post [here]. Let’s follow the thread that doesn’t fade with time, only deepens.