Unearthing History: Denmark’s Oldest Runic Inscription Revealed on 2,000-Year-Old Knife

So, check this out. In Denmark, some archaeologists just hit the jackpot. They dug up what they believe is the oldest runic inscription ever found in the country. And get this—it’s on an 8cm iron knife, almost 2,000 years old.

Now, picture this: bBknife has been chilling there for centuries. And what’s written on it? Well, the five characters spell out “hirila,” which in Old Norse means “little sword.”

Nobody even knew this knife had an inscription until some conservators cleaned it up. Jakob Bonde, the city’s museum curator and archaeologist, was blown away. He says this find is like a light bulb moment, giving us a peek into the development of early Scandinavian language.

Now, the inscription probably refers to the knife itself, not its owner. But here’s the thing, back in the day, if you were buried with a fancy knife like this, you were probably a big deal. Think Roman Empire big deal. Denmark was tight with the Romans back then, trying to be all Roman and stuff by importing their goods and copying their style.

So, this knife, along with some other cool artifacts found at the site, is gonna be on display at the Museum Odense in Møntergaarden. It’s like taking a trip back in time, giving us a glimpse into Denmark’s early history.

And get this—it's 800 years older than those famous Jelling stones in Jutland. Talk about ancient! Lisbeth Imer, a runologist from the National Museum of Denmark, says finds like this are super rare and are gonna help us piece together Denmark’s early language and society from the Iron Age.

Engraving on 2,000-year-old knife thought to be oldest runes in Denmark