Stockholm and beyond

After wandering around Kista woods I took a walk through Helenelund again.

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Another view of modern spires in Kista.
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I wanted to show A. the runestones in Uppsala, so we bundled onto a crowded train and headed north. Thankfully the connection from Uplands Vasby wasn't so busy and we had a chance to relax a little before hitting the bitter cold of easter.

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A. with a runestone.

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We walked up the hill from Uppsala to the castle on top of the hill.

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I took the bus to Mörby station, which was interesting more for the narrow gauge railway that runs through it than anything else. So I walked back toward town through Inverness.

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On the way back from Inverness I stopped by Ulriksdal Slott.

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Walking back from Ulriksdal Slott along the lakeside of Lake Edsviken (Swedish).

From the board at the site (I couldn't find any information with Google):

"Här är ett område fullt av historia. Det börjar med Odens Berg under Järnåaldern och går from till statarnas 1930-tal.

Väster om vägen har registrerats ett 60-tal flacka gravar. Vid vägen mot Ärsta ligger ett gravfält med ett 20-tal gravhögar. Att urskilja de flacka fornlämningarna är svårt om man inte är specialist.

De flacka gravformerna tyder på att den äldsta delen i det här fornminnesområdet är det väster om vägen. Där ligger en stor kvadratisk stensättning. Den har tydliga kantstenar och har haft en rest sten i mitten.

Vid undersökningar av gravar har det visat sig att resta stenar placerades på mansgravar. Gravklot ligger följaktligen på kvinnogravar.

Fornlämningarna gränsar till den gamla fastigheten Onsberga. Den hette på 1300-talet Odensberg och tyder på forntida Odenskult här i trakten.

Odens Berg tyckte de först kristnade illa om. Namnet var ju hedniskt och hade att göra med den förkristna tron på Oden, Tor, Frö och de andra gudarna.

Gravhögarna nära Ärsta är med sin välvda form typiska för gravskicket århundradena innan kristendomen kom till landet.

Gravarna är inte utgrävda men en undersökning skulle sannolikt resultera i fynd av brända ben, keramikbitar, redskap, smycken and kanske vapen. Brandgravskicket var det vanliga under denna tid.

I närheten fanns en gård eller mindre by under järnålderns slutskede. Kanske låg den vid Ärsta där den nuvarande bebyggelsens gårdar ligger."

Which I think means roughly:

"Here is an area full of history. That began with Odens Berg until 1930s.

West of the road are 60 flat graves. With the road to Ärsta lie a gravefield with 20 grave piles. Discerning the ancient ruins are hard without a specialist.

The flat graves indicate the oldest memorials are west of the road. There lie square stones. That have been carved and put up.

Excavations show they stand on graves. Grave spheres lie following the women.

The area shows the old border of Onsberga. The in 12th century called Odensberg after ancient Oden worshippers.

Odens Berg thought badly of the first Christians. Name was heathen and had made believe in Oden, Thor, Froe and the other gods.

Grave piles near Ärsta are made in arched form typical of graves in the centuries before Christendom game to the land.

Excavations have found a burnt leg, bits of pottery, tools, jewelry and perhaps weapons. Fire graves lay until this time.

In the vacinity was a farm until the end of the iron age. Maybe near Ärsta where the modern farm lies."

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Runtuna (Swedish) is a small parish to the north of Nyköping.

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Outside Runtuna Kyrka there are a couple of rune stones, one of which is, I believe, Sö 143.

"Eyjarr lét gera kuml bæði eptir "Ingulf, son sinn. Hjalpi "Kristr ǫnd hans.".

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Just outside Taxinge ("home of the young badgers") lies a castle, but I didn't find that. Instead I found a cairn marking a medieval burial ground.

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Outside the small village of Aspa is a brook.

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Standing by a bridge over a brook outside Aspa stand a couple of rune stones.

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The small village of Aspa has a number of rune stones

Location Sö 137 Side A
"þura : raisþi : stin : þ--si at : ubi : buanti : sin"
"Þora ræisþi stæin þ[ann]si at Øpi, boanda sinn."
"Þóra raised this stone in memory of Œpir, her husbandman."
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": stain : saR:si : stanr : at : ybi : o þik*staþi : at ¶ : þuru : uar : han : uestarla : uakti : karla ¶ [sa þar] * sunr þaþ * raknasuatau(k)i(f)maR[sua]"
"Stæinn saRsi standr at Øpi a þingstaði at Þoru ver. Hann vestarla væknti(?) karla, sa þaR sunR það. ..."
"This stone stands in memory of Œpir, on the Assembly-place in memory of Þóra's husband. He armed(?) (his) men in the west. The son saw this there ..."
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Location Sö 138
": hiar : stainr : stin : at : kuþan : ybis : arfa : ak : þurunaR kylu : broþurs : kuþ hialbin : at :"
"Hier stændr stæinn at goðan Øpis arfa ok ÞorunnaR, Gyllu broðurs. Guð hialpin and."
"Here stands the stone in memory of Œpir's and Þórunnr's good heir, Gylla's brother. May God help (his) spirit."
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Location Sö 141
"sloþi auk * rahnfriþ * þau * litu * biþi * bro * k(i)ara * a... * (s)...in * ra-(s)n * eftiR ihulbiarn * sun sin *"
"Sloði ok Ragnfriðr þau letu baði bro gæra o[k] s[tæ]in ræ[i]sa æftiR Igulbiorn, sun sinn."
"Slóði and Ragnfríðr, they both had the bridge made and the stone raised in memory of Ígulbjôrn, their son."
Location Sö 289
"ostriþ : lit : -ira : ku(m)... ...usi ÷ at : anunt ÷ auk : raknualt : sun : sin ÷: urþu : ta...R : - (t)an...-...(k)u : ua-u : rikiR : o rauniki : ak : snialastiR : i : suiþiuþu"
"Astrið let [g]æra kum[bl þa]usi at Anund ok Ragnvald, sun sinn. Urðu da[uði]R [i] Dan[mar]ku, va[R]u rikiR a Rauningi ok sniallastiR i Sveþiuðu."
"Astrid had this memorial made after Anund and Ragnvald, her son. (They) died in Denmark, were powerful in Rauningi and the ablest in Sweden."
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As well as the rune stones the small village of Aspa has a beautiful view of the lake - indeed this was, in ancient times, a very important place in Sweden as all of the kings would cross the river here.

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On my way back from Aspa and Runtuna I stopped at the small town of Gnesta, this is a small town at the periphery of the SL Stockholm commuter rail system. It reminded me, in some ways, of Fort William, though it is half the size.

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In the small town of Järna I found another rune stone, by the church. I didn't know, when I was there, that Järna is the home of Anthroposophy in Sweden.

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Just outside Södertalje is a Scania truck factory. There is a massive rail interchange associated with it, though I'm not sure they still use rail as a major transport for their finished vehicles.

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This first looks a lot like other rocks in the ground in this area, but I stopped to take a closer look because of the little information board by it - even standing next to it it wasn't obvious it was actually a carved stone.
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U163 "Gamall and Sveinn and Farulfr had the rock-slab carved in memory of Þórir, their father; and Gamall in memory of his foster-father. ...-fastr cut."
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U151 "Þorbjôrn and Ingiþóra had this stone raised in memory of Ígull, their father; and Erinvé in memory of her husbandman and in memory of ..."
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"Jarlabanki ... He met his end in Greece."
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"... carved the runes ... may help... his"
These last two are U139 & U140 (though I don't know which way around)
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U150 "* iarla*b]aki * auk * fastui * litu * raisa * stina * aftiR [* suain * sun * sin"
"Iarlabanki ok Fastvi letu ræisa stæina æftiR Svæin, sun sinn."
"Jarlabanki and Fastvé had the stones raised in memory of Sveinn, their son."
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Not far from the roadside runestones there is a gravefield.

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Turning right before Helenelund station there is a piece of wasteland between the railway and the E4 road. Through this wasteground there is a path, so I was curious about where it went. It doesn't go anywhere, just getting narrower and less inviting until the sun set and it was time to go home.
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Hiding in the corner of the gravefield are another three rune stones, as well as those by the roadside.

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U135 "× ikifastr × auk × austain × auk × suain × litu * raisa + staina þasa * at * austain faþur × sin × auk × bru × þasa karþu × auk × hauk þana ×"
"Ingifastr ok Øystæinn ok Svæinn letu ræisa stæina þessa at Øystæin, faður sinn, ok bro þessa gærðu ok haug þenna."
"Ingifastr and Eysteinn and Sveinn had these stones raised in memory of Eysteinn, their father, and made this bridge and this mound."
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U137 "* aystin * auk * astriþr * raistu * stina * aftir * kak * sun * sin *"
"Øystæinn ok Æstriðr ræistu stæina æftiR Kag(?)/Gag(?), sun sinn."
"Eysteinn and Ástríðr raised the stones in memory of Kagr(?)/Gagr(?), their son."
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U136 "× astriþr × la(t) + raisa × staina × þasa × [a]t austain × buta sin × is × suti × iursalir auk antaþis ub i × kirkum"
"Æstriðr let ræisa stæina þessa at Øystæin, bonda sinn, es sotti IorsaliR ok ændaðis upp i Grikkium."
"Ástríðr had these stones raised in memory of Eysteinn, her husbandman, who attacked Jerusalem and met his end up in Greece."
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