<< Other Photo Pages >> Heavener Rune Stone - Carving in United States in The Plains
Submitted by AKFisher on Thursday, 07 September 2023 Page Views: 211
Date UncertainSite Name: Heavener Rune Stone Alternative Name: Oklahoma RunestonesCountry: United States
NOTE: This site is 69.262 km away from the location you searched for.
Region: The Plains Type: Carving
Nearest Town: Heavener, OK
Latitude: 34.901120N Longitude: 94.57816W
Condition:
5 | Perfect |
4 | Almost Perfect |
3 | Reasonable but with some damage |
2 | Ruined but still recognisable as an ancient site |
1 | Pretty much destroyed, possibly visible as crop marks |
0 | No data. |
-1 | Completely destroyed |
5 | Superb |
4 | Good |
3 | Ordinary |
2 | Not Good |
1 | Awful |
0 | No data. |
5 | Can be driven to, probably with disabled access |
4 | Short walk on a footpath |
3 | Requiring a bit more of a walk |
2 | A long walk |
1 | In the middle of nowhere, a nightmare to find |
0 | No data. |
5 | co-ordinates taken by GPS or official recorded co-ordinates |
4 | co-ordinates scaled from a detailed map |
3 | co-ordinates scaled from a bad map |
2 | co-ordinates of the nearest village |
1 | co-ordinates of the nearest town |
0 | no data |
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Located in Heavener Runestone Park in Le Flore County, Oklahoma, near Heavener, Oklahoma. The runes on the stone are ᚷᛆᛟᛗᛖᛞᚨᛐ. Most of these characters belong to the Elder Futhark, but the final "L" is reversed compared with the last "A", and the second character is a short-twig "A" from the Younger Futhark.
The transcription is then gaomedal, but is generally thought that the intention is that the second character should be an elder futhark "N" (also reversed). The inscription then reads gnomedal (either "gnome valley", or a personal name "G. Nomedal"). Media presented at the Visitor's Center translate the ᛆ as an "L," and state that the inscription was probably a claim marker meaning "valley belonging to Glome," or "Glome's Valley."
Archaeologist Ken Feder notes that unlike the situation in eastern Canada where evidence has been found that proves a Norse presence, nothing similar has been found anywhere near Heavener or even in the Midwestern United States. He suggests that "It is unlikely that the Norse would get significantly more fastidious about leaving any evidence behind of their presence in Oklahoma."[3]
Archaeologist Lyle Tompsen in a 2007 Masters Thesis for the University of Leicester (published in ESOP 29 2011:5-43) examined the runestone and noted:
- There is no cultural evidence of Vikings in or near the region.
- No Old Norse approach to translation fits this stone.
- The stone's most likely translation is 'Gnome Dale' (Valley of the Gnomes).
- Scandinavian presence in the nearby town of Heavener is early and the likeliest source of the carving of the stone.
- Other purported rune stones in the region are modern creations, or misinterpreted Native American rock art.
- "Barring any new evidence, the stone is best considered a modern creation."[1]
Henrik Williams, professor in Nordic languages at University of Uppsala, visited Oklahoma in 2015 as part of a tour sponsored by the American Association for Runic Studies in collaboration with Uppsala University and the American Friends of Uppsala University. In a speech to the Poteau Chamber of Commerce he said that the Heavener stone "Is probably in the top 20 I’ve seen in the world, just for the sheer size and impressive nature of it.” He said that it was probably 19th century with a 20% probability of it being 10th or 11th century. “All words have endings, back 1,000 and 500 years ago, and that is one thing we find disturbing,” Williams said of the nonconforming ending on the Heavener Runestone. “None of the American inscriptions ever found have any kind of layout or ornamentation. That’s another thing that doesn’t really fit the pattern.” He also noted that "There are no Vikings or earlier inscriptions on Iceland or Greenland, so it’s a big jump from Sweden to Heavener."[4]. Source: Wikipedia (see link below).
In 1991, Carl Albert State College in nearby Poteau changed its mascot to a Viking in the stone's honor.
References:
1. Tompsen, Lyle (January 2011). "An Archaeologist Looks at the Oklahoma Runestones ESOP 29, 2011: 5-43 | Lyle Tompsen". Esop (Epigraphic Society Occasional Publications). Academia.edu. Retrieved 2013-03-27.
2. "The Heavener Runestone".
3. Kenneth L. Feder, Encyclopedia of Dubious Archaeology: From Atlantis To The Walam Olum, page 137 (Greenwood, 2010). ISBN 978-0-313-37919-2
4. Lovett, John (May 3, 2015). "Swedish Runologist Studies Heavener Runestone 'For Truth'". Times Record. Retrieved 16 January 2016.
Further reading and information:
Wikipedia
Heavener Runestone Park
Directions: From Heavener, OK via US-59 N/W 1st St and Co Rd E1460, 3 mi.
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