Danish archaeologists have found a small knife containing five characters that translate to ‘little sword’ and are believed to be the oldest runes ever found in Denmark. The rune characters predate the arrival of an alphabet.
The find, near the city of Odense, came from a grave found beneath an ancient urn, in the same area where, in 1865, an inscribed bone comb was found, the previous champion for oldest.
Jakob Bonde, the city’s museum curator and archeologist who made the discovery, said he at first thought it was an ordinary knife, as the runes were not visible, but after it was cleaned by conservators it became clear that it contained a word. “It’s like getting a note from beyond,” he told press.
In February, the knife will go on display at the Museum Odense along with other artifacts from the area.
