The Runestone of Ockelbo – Are They Playing Hnefatafl?
Today, while researching another bit of the history of Hnefatafl, I stumbled on an interesting runestone which depicts two people playing a game of Hnefatafl. It’s the Runestone of Ockelbo.
It is located, as you may guess, in the Swedish town Ockelbo and it is dated to have been erected between 1066 and 1100 A.C..
To say the least, this runestone has gone through quite a tumultuous history between the 11th century and now, so if you enjoy short peculiarities of history, don’t skip the next part.
After the section about its history, we’ll get to what is depicted on the Runestone of Ockelbo. It’s not necessarily clear that they are indeed playing Hnefatafl, so we’ll have a look at what other games it may be, and what it possibly tells us about how Hnefatafl was played.
The discovery of the Ockelbo Runestone
In 1791 the people of Ockelbo (in Gästrikland, Sweden) started to build a new church just to the North of their former church, which was being deconstructed.
While the new church was already completed in 1793, it was only two years later, in 1795, when a discovery was made. It unveiled a part of viking history that had been hidden on purpose.
In the foundations of the old church, an ancient viking runestone was found, depicting various scenes from viking mythology.
It turned out that the runestone of Ockelbo was actually incorporated in the wall of the old church…
While to the modern eye it may seem criminally careless to use an old viking runestone as a brick for a church wall (as it indeed is), this is a common theme in the way christianity has spread throughout Europe. Many early christian churches tend to be built on top of ancient locations of worship. Think for example of the Viking Temple of Uppsala, which was replaced by the Christian Cathedral of Uppsala sometime in the years before 1123. Other examples can be found throughout Europe.
On a side note, Christianity did not only incorporate locations, but traditions as well…
Did you ever wonder where Santa Claus comes from historically?
Would you believe me if I told you that’s Odin?
You better!
During the old Yule festivities somebody would wear a hood and a beard – two attributes of the Norse god Odin. That has evolved over time into Santa Claus. The history of the spread of christianity is filled with such examples of sprinkling some christian flavour over popular pagan dishes.
Anyway, back to the Runestone of Ockelbo. Matters went from bad to worse. As it was removed from the foundations of the church, the runestone broke into three parts.
Then, in 1830, these three parts were then “re-rediscovered” in a farm in Ockelbo. From there, they were brought to the newly erected church.
This time around, the runestone’s residence in the church of Ockelbo didn’t work out so well either. The stone was destroyed in a fire in the church which razed in the year 1904.
After this battering history, today, the runestone only exists as a copy.
This copy can now be found outside of the Ockelbo church – perhaps it’s more safe there.
So what of this copy?
Well, the stone copy was made in 1932 and it was based on drawings from 1884 by the hand of two guys named Karl Hjalmar Kempff and Brynolf Måhlén. We’re lucky their blueprints were and are still around!
Moreover, we’re also lucky that they managed to find it. At the time of their arrival, father Nordlund had not been in office for too long and he did not know where the parts of the Runestone were stored.
Interestingly, in Kempff’s report on how he made the copy, he spoke of only two parts, not the three parts into which the runestone broke according to other sources.
What is depicted on the Runestone of Ockelbo
On the Runestone, we can find several things:
- Runes (no kidding!)
- Scenes from the hero Sigurd
- Yggdrasil
- A depiction of two people playing a board game, resembling Hnefatafl
The Runic text on the Runestone of Ockelbo
So what do these runes actually say?
“Bläsa lät resa dessa vackra stenkummel efter sin son Svarthövde. Fridälv var hans moder …”
Translation time:
“Bläsa had this beautiful megalith raised for his son Blackhead. Fridälv was his mother.”
This is the most neutral translation. But let’s note that ‘kummel’ can also refer to a stone grave, so the entire text makes you wonder, at first sight, if the Runestone of Ockelbo is a memorial for Bläsa’s lost son. Of course, the text ‘Fridälv was his mother’ is also highly suggestive of it being a memorial runestone.
Let’s assume for a moment that the stone is in fact a memorial stone. Can we find clues of this in the other parts of the stone?
Let’s have a look at what we see!
The Hnefatafl players on the Ockelbo Runestone
Michael Schulte wrote a good paper on the transition from Hnefatafl to chess and the role of vikings in the adoption of chess. On page 12 to 17 he talks about the Ockelbo Runestone.
He briefly mentions that both players are gambling and drinking. I personally have a hard time seeing anything suggesting that they’re gambling. Do you see it? I’d love to know.
To me, it could just as easily depict father Bläsa and his son Svarthövde having a jolly good old time playing a game of Hnefatafl, as people do.
About the identity of the players, however, Michael Schulte has this to say:
““in this sense, the game embraces its players and places them at the center of a perfectly harmonious and symmetrical world, a characteristic which it evidently holds in common with board games such as hnefatafl and chess. it is noteworthy that the aura of the gaming gods in Vǫlospá is rehearsed on the pictorial rune-stone from ockelbo. This rune-stone, likely from the 11th century, has not received much attention in the research literature on board games. However, as we shall see, this is not because it lacks significance to this field of study.”
So apparently it’s not Bläsa and Blackhead after all, it’s the gods themselves. I have to say, it does make sense to me. A viking father raising a stone for his deceased son would do well appeasing the gods by depicting them, rather than himself.
In fact, as Schulte mentions, gods playing Hnefatafl is something we can find in the Edda as well!
See for example the Vǫlospá stanza 8, or 61. These Aesir gods have a set of Hnefatafl made of gold. Pretty cool.
In any case what about the board that we see on the Ockelbo Runestone? Is it really Hnefatafl? Or is it some other game similar to Hnefatafl?
The board game on The Runestone of Ockelbo: Is it really Hnefatafl?
By this time, I have done more research into this post that I had originally intended. But that’s how things go sometimes.
I’ve found many resources unambiguously assuming it is Hnefatafl. Only a few wonder if it might be something else, like I do.
The defining characteristics of Hnefatafl are certainly in place. The four corner squares, and the central king’s square.
But what should we make of the diagonal lines?
They do remind one of the game Halatafl, now commonly known as the Fox-and-Geese game which originated from scandinavia as well, but is commonly thought to have followed later, in the 14th century. Also, the board on the Ockelbo Runestone is square, not a cross, such as is the case with Halatafl.
Joanna Zorya has an interesting theory on how the diagonal lines may have been used in Hnefatafl. She argues that we should not think of the board as consisting of squares, but rather as lines and points. The diagonal line then would be a possible path for the king to escape to his own central square.
The diagonal lines also are reminiscent of the chinese game Liubo, although to presume that’s what’s being played here, is too far of a stretch for me.
Lastly, of what I could find, there is the Irish game Fidchell or Gwyddbwyll, which is also a possible contender for the game that’s being played here.
Despite the many contenders, we should keep in mind that Hnefatafl was the most popular during this period and is therefore the most likely to have been depicted on the Runestone of Ockelbo. Influences from China are a very large stretch. Fidchell is not part of the Tafl family, and it is Tafl which has several honorable mentions in the Edda. To assume that it is the Fox game Halatafl, would be asynchronous with what we know about when that game was played.
So yes, it is most likely Hnefatafl that is depicted on the Runestone of Ockelbo. But I have to say that I remain interested in any theory about what those diagonal lines pertain to.
Perhaps it’s not a different game, but instead the Ockelbo Runestone gives us a hint at a rule of Hnefatafl now long lost?
Interesting!
Sigurd Fafnesbane fights a dragon, as heroes do
Let’s have a look at the other parts of the runestone while we’re here.
The runestone of Ockelbo is considered part of the so-called Sigurd Stones – a legendary hero in Norse mythology. The Sigurd stones are all runestones which depict certain scenes from the Sigurd legend.
Focussing on the runestone in Ockelbo, Sigurd is depicted fighting a dragon, together with his horse Grane. It is notable that there are in total four runestones (Swedish source) which depict this scene: Sigurd and Grane fighting a dragon, close to a tree.
Let’s move on to the next depiction.
Yggdrasil
Yggdrasil plays a central role in Norse mythology: it is the enormous tree which connects the 9 worlds of Norse mythology.
There was for example a realm for the giants (Jotunheim), a realm for the Aesir gods (Asgard), a realm for the elves (Alfheim), a realm for men (Midgard) and a realm for the dead Helheim.
On a memorial stone, it seems appropriate to depict the tree which symbolizes how the worlds of the living and the dead are connected, doesn’t it? Did Bläsa incorporate the depiction of Yggdrasil on the Ockelbo Runestone to symbolise in one image the connection between Midgard and Helheim, where his son Svarthövde now is?
Maybe, but we cannot be so sure. Let me explain two reasons why.
Firstly, our source for the 9 worlds of Norse mythology is the Edda, which was composed in Iceland by Snorri in the 13th century, partly from older texts. As far as my understanding of Norse mythology currently goes, Helheim is sometimes considered not to be part of the original 9 worlds of Norse mythology. The Edda was composed by the time that Christianity had already made its way to Iceland, and Snorri himself was a christian. This alone gives the theory some credence that Helheim is a later addition with a christian origin.
And as our friends over at norse mythology state:
“Snorri is known for attempting to impose a systematization on his source material that isn’t present in his sources”
Yet, it is still possible that the depiction of Yggdrasil on the Runestone of Ockelbo is in fact a way for Bläsa to carve in stone a connection between his world and that of his son. Did you know that Valhalla is mentioned by a source as being a part of Asgard as well? The arithmetic of nine worlds, then, would still make sense even without Helheim.
Unfortunately, though, the sources that we have on Norse mythology do not give a definitive answer on where the dead go after life. Dieing out at sea for example, could lead to a one way ticket to the realm of the giantess Ran according to some sources. And then there’s also Folkvang, a place for the dead to reside amongst the Vanir gods, instead of the Aesir gods.
But there’s a second thing I want to mention here, which may be a better way to explain the depiction of Yggdrasil on the Ockelbo Runestone. The tree is found in other Sigurd Stones as well, where he is fighting a dragon. It is therefore more likely that the presence of Yggdrasil is simply a mythological backdrop to this tale of Sigurd.
A quick recap
Well, that certainly was an interesting piece of history! As is often the case, when researching a subject, more questions arise than that are answered.
As it pertains to the online game of Hnefatafl that I’m making, I took two things from this exploration of the Ockelbo Runestone.
Firstly, the diagonal lines on the Hnefatafl board are interesting to me. I may at some point explore these alternative rules (if that’s indeed what they are), and possibly make a playable variation for that. It reminds me a bit of Alea Evangelii, which in the sources also seems to consist of lines and points, rather than as squares. Very interesting.
Secondly, I’ll look into where the vikings go when they die in battle. Perhaps when fighting on sea, your vikings will be sent to the layers of the giantess Ran. It would be nice to explore some viking lore while playing Hnefatafl, wouldn’t it? Might as well.
It’s back to programming for me now, see you in the next article!
Thanks to I. Berig, for making the pictures of this Runestone under the CC-BY 2.5 license!