THE GREAT RUNIC STONE OF JELLING

 

THE GREAT RUNIC STONE OF JELLING

When the Viking Age is ending, there can be seen two different phenomena which reach the whole Nordic Europe; first of them is the strong centralization of political power represented by kings (less in number and more powerful than they were at the beginning of this period), and the progressive advance of Christian religion, joining the legitimacy of these kings as the only chosen ones unlike the host of heathen leaders.
In Denmark, due to the impressive stones the kings rose, it is easy to think out that here laid the foundations of the future Danish state, around 1000 A.D. as it shows the great work ordered by King Harald Bluetooth, in memory of his father and his mother, Gorm and Thyre respectively, as well as his conquest and the christianization of this land.
The great stone has got three carved faces; the first one shows a great mythical beast which belongs to Mammen/Ringerike style (partly by knots, partly for the complete-body design), the second one displays literally this words: “The King Harald ordered to rise this monument in memory of his father Gorm and his mother Thyre –the same Harald who conquered all Denmark and Norway to himself and made the Danes become Christians”, finally, there is a tied representation of the Christ.
The stone is dated ca. 960-985 A.D., it outstands in the middle of a tumuli complex excavated in different moments, and they are taken as the tombs of the Danish kings.

Fuentes/Sources: Richard Hall, “El Mundo de los Vikingos”, ed. Akal, 2008.