Anglo-Saxon runic rings facts for kids
There are seven special rings from the Anglo-Saxon period (around the 800s or 900s AD) that have mysterious messages carved into them. These messages are written in an old alphabet called futhorc, which was used to write Old English.
The two most famous rings are the Bramham Moor Ring, found in the 1700s, and the Kingmoor Ring, found in 1817. Both have a very similar magical message carved into them:
ærkriufltkriuriþonglæstæpontol
A third ring, found before 1824 (and possibly the same as one found in 1773 at Linstock Castle), also has a similar magical message:
ery.ri.uf.dol.yri.þol.ƿles.te.pote.nol.
The other five rings have much shorter messages:
- Wheatley Hill Ring: Found in 1993 in County Durham. It says: "[h]ring ic hatt[æ]" which means "I am called ring."
- Coquet Island Ring: Found before 1866 in Northumberland, but now lost. It said: "+ þis is -" (this is…).
- Cramond Ring: Found in 1869-70 in Edinburgh. It has a short, hard-to-read message.
- Thames Exchange Ring: Found in 1989 in London. It also has a short message.
Contents
The Bramham Moor Ring
The Bramham Moor Ring was found in Bramham cum Oglethorpe, West Yorkshire, around 1732. It's now kept in the National Museum of Denmark.
This ring is from the 800s. It's made from a mix of gold and silver called electrum, with black details called niello. It's about 29 millimeters wide and weighs 40.22 grams.
The special message on this ring is:
᛭ᚫᚱᛦᚱᛁᚢᚠᛚᛏ᛭ᛦᚱᛁᚢᚱᛁᚦᚩᚾ᛭ᚷᛚᚫᛋᛏᚫᛈᚩᚾ͡ᛏᚩᚿ
ærkriuflt | kriuriþon | glæstæpon͡tol
Some of the letters are special types of futhorc letters.
The Kingmoor Ring
The Kingmoor Ring, also known as the Greymoor Hill Ring, is from the 800s or 900s. It's made of gold and is about 27 millimeters wide.
It was found in June 1817 at Greymoor Hill, near Carlisle, Cumbria. By 1859, the ring was owned by the British Museum. You can see a copy of it at the Tullie House Museum and Art Gallery in Carlisle.
The message on this ring is:
᛭ᚨᚱᛦᚱᛁᚢᚠᛚᛏᛦᚱᛁᚢᚱᛁᚦᚩᚾᚷᛚᚨᚴᛏᚨᛈᚩᚾ / ᛏᚨᚿ
ærkriufltkriuriþonglæstæpon/tol
The last part of the message, ᛏᚨᚿ (which means tol), is written on the inside of the ring. There are 30 symbols in total.
The Linstock Castle Ring
This ring is made of agate, a type of stone, and might be from the 800s. It was found before 1824 and is now in the British Museum.
The message on this ring is:
ᛖᚱᚣ᛫ᚱᛁ᛫ᚢᚠ᛫ᛞᚩᛚ᛫ᚣᚱᛁ᛫ᚦᚩᛚ᛫?ᛚᛖᛋ᛫ᛏᛖ᛫ᛈᚩᛏᛖ᛫ᚾᚩᛚ??᛫
ery.ri.uf.dol.yri.þol.?les.te.pote.nol.
Experts believe this message is a slightly changed version of the one found on the Kingmoor and Bramham Moor rings.
We don't know exactly where this ring was found. However, some think it's the same ring found at Linstock Castle in 1773. A note from that time describes a "Runic ring" found near "Picts Wall" (which is another name for Hadrian's Wall).
The Wheatley Hill Finger-Ring
This ring is made of silver with a gold coating. It's from the 700s and was found in 1993 in Wheatley Hill, County Durham. It's now in the British Museum.
The message on this ring is:
[ᚻ]ᚱᛁᚾᚷᛁᚳᚻᚪᛏᛏ[ᚫ]
[h]ringichatt[æ]
I am called ring
The first and last letters of the message are hidden because three decorative gems were added to the ring later.
Often, old messages on objects might say "I am [name]" or "This belongs to [person]". But this ring is special because its message actually tells you what kind of object it is: a "ring"!
What the 'ærkriu' Charm Means
The special message "ærkriu" found on the Kingmoor and Bramham Moor Rings is thought to be a kind of spell or charm to stop bleeding. This idea comes from comparing it to a similar charm found in an old book called Bald's Leechbook, which was a medical text from the Anglo-Saxon period.
Because of this, experts believe the entire message on these rings was a protective or healing charm. The ring itself would have acted like an amulet, which is an object believed to bring good luck or protection.
The old book gives instructions like: "to stop blood, poke into the ear with a whole ear of barley, in such a way that he [the patient] be unaware of it." It also mentions that the charm is "either for horse or men, a blood-stauncher."
While the charm might seem like a jumble of words, some parts of it can be understood. For example, some words seem to come from the Irish language, like "struth fola," which means "stream of blood." Other parts sound like Old English. This mix of languages suggests that people in Anglo-Saxon times might have used words from different cultures in their charms and spells.
Fake Rings
Watch out! Some fake rings exist that look similar to these ancient ones. They were made in the 1700s. These fakes are usually made of bronze and don't have the black niello letters. Instead, they might have some kind of paint or lacquer, and you can often see signs that they were made by machines.
See Also
- Rings in Germanic cultures
