From Stick to Screen: Digital Editions of Runic Inscriptions as Research Tools

2026-07-22

The project “From Stick to Screen: Digital Editions of Runic Inscriptions as Research Tools” will create a born-digital, interactive and open-access critical corpus edition of the runic inscriptions from the four medieval Norwegian trading towns Bergen, Trondheim, Oslo and Tønsberg. It will address the challenges of proper digital representation of runes from a multidisciplinary perspective, aiming to present a solution to existing challenges. The main objective of the project is to examine new ways of digitally editing and analysing runic inscriptions with a view to how digital museums/editions can be actively used to conduct research. Two case studies will be undertaken to show how the new digital edition of the runic inscriptions from Bergen, Trondheim, Oslo and Tønsberg can immediately be used as a tool for research. The case studies represent two further research objectives of the project. The first case study focuses on the diachronic and geographical spread of runes and variations of runes within these four towns, and will try to identify regional differences in the use of certain runic characters in the material. The second case study will analyse the diachronic and geographical spread of the names appearing in the runic inscriptions from these four towns with a view to the identity, geographic mobility and gender distribution of the rune-carvers. The project will rely on the infrastructure at the Museum of Cultural History, University of Oslo, to publish and link high-quality photographic documentation of the runic inscriptions to data collected about these inscriptions. Photographs and research data combined will form the new digital edition. This in turn will be made accessible to all interested audiences at the end of the project as an interactive tool. The results of the two case studies will be directly accessible when using the digital edition, furthering understanding and knowledge about medieval runic inscriptions from trading towns.

Norway

2025-10-01