Thyra Got All the Chances to Be the Most Popular Viking, As Per New Runestone Discovery
A study of two groups of runestones that were dedicated to the first known queen of Denmark points to the potential that Thyra may have once been even more adored than either her son, the renowned Harald Bluetooth, or her husband, ‘Gorm the Old,’ whose name only appears on a single stone. This is suggested by the fact that Thyra’s name appears on two groups of runestones while her son’s and husband’s names appear on just one. In the annals of history, her part in Viking history has been written off as little more than a “side issue.” Well, it appears that now’s not the case anymore!
Find out more about discovery below.
The combination of the present analyses and the geographical distribution of the runestones indicates that Thyra was one of the key figures—or even the critical figure—for the assembling of the Danish realm, in which she herself may
have played an active part, explained researchers from the National Museum of Denmark, the Swedish National Heritage Board, and the County Administrative Board of West Sweden.
According to a long-standing custom in Denmark, runestones were given vibrant paint jobs before being set up at prominent locations such as crossroads, burial grounds, or grave mounds that were fashioned to resemble ships.
On one series of memorial stones discovered near Jelling, the royal seat of the Viking royalty, Thyra is memorialized as “Denmark’s strength/salvation,” while the Ravnunge-Tue Stones describe a person called Thyra and allude to her as a term that might mean “lady” or “queen.” How likely is it that…? Not so in the scientific world!
In point of fact, there are less than ten runestones that have been identified and recovered to this point that are made especially for women, and it appears that four of these runestones are dedicated to Thyra. What a fascinating thing!
The best part is that now, the researchers have reason to believe that those Thyras are actually just one person. They have discovered a link that can be used to connect the two different groups of stones. How exactly, you may ask?! More information has been gleaned from the runestones when they were subjected to 3D procedures. The next task is to conduct an investigation at a vacant burial ground that is situated close to the runestones at Thyra’s Jelling. Although it was thought that Gorm’s remains were buried in this grave, it may really serve as the last burial location for Denmark’s first queen. Who knows what researchers may find next? More tough Viking women?
Tiesha loves to share her passion for everything that’s beautiful in this world. Apart from writing on her beauty blog and running her own beauty channel on Youtube, she also enjoys traveling and photography. Tiesha covers various stories on the website.
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