NordenBladet — A 2,000-year-old runestone has been found in Norway by Archaeologists, which date back to the earliest days of using runic writing. The stone has been labelled as the world’s oldest runestone. The Museum of Cultural History in Oslo has commented that the rhinestone is one of the earliest example of words recorded in writing in Scandinavia. The rhinestone is a brownish block of sandstone carved with runes.
Kristel Zilmer, a professor at the University of Oslo, explained, “This find will give us a lot of knowledge about the use of runes in the early iron age. This may be one of the first attempts to use runes in Norway and Scandinavia on stone.”
The rhinestone was actually discovered at the end of 2021 in a grave ear Tyrifjord, west of Oslo. However, time was needed to analyse and date the runestone before making a public announcement.
Previously, older runes have been found on other objects, but this is the oldest to be found carved on stone. The earliest runic was found in Denmark on a comb made of bone, which was carved with either the the tip of a knife or a needle.