The Oldest Scandinavian Legal Text: New Study Challenges Traditional Views of Viking Age Economy

SciTechDaily ^ | August 20, 2024 | Stockholm University

[SunkenCiv]

A recent study by Stockholm University has provided a new interpretation of the runic inscription on the Forsa Ring, an ancient ring that dictated fines for specific offenses. The reinterpretation positions that ring as the oldest documented value record in Scandinavia and reveals how the Vikings handled fines in a flexible and practical manner. The research was recently published in the Scandinavian Economic History Review.

The Forsa Ring (Forsaringen in Swedish) is an iron ring from Hälsingland, dated to the 9th or 10th century. The runic inscription on the ring describes fines for a specific offense, where payment was to be made in the form of oxen and silver. The ring is believed to have been used as a door handle and is currently the oldest known preserved legal text in Scandinavia...

The new interpretation shows that the Vikings had a system where both oxen and silver served as units of payment. This system allowed for multiple types of units of accounts to be used concurrently, reducing transaction complexity and making it easier for people to meet their financial obligations. The new interpretation also aligns better with how the system functioned later according to later regional laws and is, according to Edvinsson, significant for our understanding of both Scandinavian and European monetary history.

[SunkenCiv]

Credit: Lars Kennerstedt/the Swedish National Heritage Board

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks for the link! I processed two keywords (Vikings, TheVikings) and have them grouped by year. There's only one for 2024 before this one? That's odd.

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[Red Badger]

The Vikings suck this year.................

[SunkenCiv]

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[SunkenCiv]

That’s true every year. /rimshot

[SunkenCiv]

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