Scandinavian scientists have identified
the oldest known mention
of the
Norse god Odin
on a gold disk found in western Denmark, they announced Wednesday.
The inscription is the first tangible proof that Odin was already worshiped in the fifth century, at least 150 years before the earliest reference to date, a brooch found in southern Germany and dated to the second half of the sixth century, he explained. Lisbeth Imer, rune expert at the National Museum in Copenhagen.
The inscription "is Odin's man" is seen in a semicircle on a figure on a golden bracteate unearthed in Vindelev, Denmark (AP).
The disc found in Denmark was part of a hoard containing around a kilogram of gold, including large medallions the size of coffee saucers and Roman coins turned into jewellery.
It was found in the town of Vindelev, in the center of the Jutland Peninsula.
Experts believe the collection
was buried 1,500 years ago
, either to hide it from enemies or as a tribute to appease the gods.
One of the pieces, a golden bracteate (a thin decorative pendant) bears an inscription saying he is
Odin's man
, probably an allusion to a king or feudal lord.
the runes
"It's one of the best executed
runic inscriptions
I've ever seen," Imer said.
Runes are symbols used by ancient tribes in northern Europe to communicate in writing.
Odin was one of the main gods
in Norse mythology, often associated with warfare and poetry.
More than a thousand bracteates have been found in northern Europe, according to the National Museum in Copenhagen, where the treasure found in 2020 is on display.
Krister Vasshus, a specialist in ancient languages, noted that because runic inscriptions are rare, each runic inscription(s) is vital to how we understand the past.
The disc found in Denmark was part of a hoard containing around a kilogram of gold, including large medallions the size of coffee saucers and Roman coins made into jewellery.
"When an inscription of this length appears, that's already impressive," Vasshus said.
It gives us some pretty interesting information
about religion in the past, which also tells us something about society in the past.
During the Viking Age,
a period between 793 and 1066, the Norsemen known as Vikings waged extensive raiding campaigns, colonized, conquered, and traded throughout Europe.
They also came to North America.
The Norse worshiped many gods
, all of whom had various characteristics, weaknesses, and attributes.
According to heroic sagas and runic inscriptions on stones, many human features were attributed to the gods, who could behave like people.
"That kind of mythology can take us further and make us investigate again the other 200 bracteate inscriptions we know of," Imer said.
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