Periodic Reporting for period 1 - FSTS (From Stick to Screen: Digital Editions of Runic Inscriptions as Research Tools)
Reporting period: 2023-01-02 to 2025-05-01
Runes are a writing system used mostly by Germanic peoples in various regions of continental Europe and Scandinavia from c. AD 100 to 1700. Around 8000 runic inscriptions carved into wood, stone or other materials exist worldwide, although runes also appear in medieval and later manuscripts. They have been studied by scholars since the 17th century and continue to be present, e.g. in Heavy Metal band logos, computer games and productions like Disney’s Frozen.
The information on runes available, in particular on the internet, is, however, of varying quality and often outdated. There are also a number of problems with digitally storing runes. Graphemics, the study of a writing system’s basic components (e.g. letters/runes), their form and function, are an important aspect of runological research. It is often relied upon for dating or geographically locating an inscription or to determine whether a runic inscription is falsified or real. Unfortunately, studies on the actual geographic distribution of runes are challenging, since several runes appear as variations of the same underlying shape (e.g. ᚢ can also appear as ᚤ, ᚥ or ᚣ). Runologists are still not certain what these variants indicate in each single case (different pronunciation; regional variants; handwriting?).
Lack of standardisation and proper systems to store runes digitally makes research into the use and geographical spread of different runic variants difficult. On the other hand, good digital representation and edition of runic inscriptions would permit completely new ways of analysing runic corpora.
The project “From Stick to Screen” 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 examines new ways of digitally editing and analysing runic inscriptions using photographic documentation and software and attempt to solve the question of how to store runes and their variations digitally, thus creating a digital repository providing reliable, quality-checked and accessible information to scholars and a public increasingly interested in runes and the Middle Ages.
The information on runes available, in particular on the internet, is, however, of varying quality and often outdated. There are also a number of problems with digitally storing runes. Graphemics, the study of a writing system’s basic components (e.g. letters/runes), their form and function, are an important aspect of runological research. It is often relied upon for dating or geographically locating an inscription or to determine whether a runic inscription is falsified or real. Unfortunately, studies on the actual geographic distribution of runes are challenging, since several runes appear as variations of the same underlying shape (e.g. ᚢ can also appear as ᚤ, ᚥ or ᚣ). Runologists are still not certain what these variants indicate in each single case (different pronunciation; regional variants; handwriting?).
Lack of standardisation and proper systems to store runes digitally makes research into the use and geographical spread of different runic variants difficult. On the other hand, good digital representation and edition of runic inscriptions would permit completely new ways of analysing runic corpora.
The project “From Stick to Screen” 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 examines new ways of digitally editing and analysing runic inscriptions using photographic documentation and software and attempt to solve the question of how to store runes and their variations digitally, thus creating a digital repository providing reliable, quality-checked and accessible information to scholars and a public increasingly interested in runes and the Middle Ages.
Based on previous work by other runologists, the project created a framework for the digital encoding of different variations of runes and a SQL-based database model capable of storing information on runic inscriptions down to the level of the single rune. The database, which contains information on the inscriptions from the four trading towns Bergen, Trondheim, Oslo and Tønsberg, can thus replace traditional paper-based editions of runic inscriptions. It allows for new research to be constantly added and kept up-to-date with recent publications, and can be expanded to store information on runic inscriptions from other places as well.
As part of this work and to ensure that pictures of inscriptions, which are an important aspect of paper editions, can be included in the digital edition, about 60 inscriptions from Oslo were documented using Structured Light Scanning (SLS) and Reflective Transformation Imaging (RTI). The first method provides high-quality 3D-models of the inscriptions. The second methods provides high-quality 2D-images of the inscriptions, which offer the options of moving the light source to examine the inscription from different angles.
As part of this work and to ensure that pictures of inscriptions, which are an important aspect of paper editions, can be included in the digital edition, about 60 inscriptions from Oslo were documented using Structured Light Scanning (SLS) and Reflective Transformation Imaging (RTI). The first method provides high-quality 3D-models of the inscriptions. The second methods provides high-quality 2D-images of the inscriptions, which offer the options of moving the light source to examine the inscription from different angles.
While runic databases already exist, the new model (and resulting database) present the first attempt to consciously replace traditional paper-based editions of runic inscriptions with a flexible, scalable and updatable model that allows research into runic inscriptions at different levels of details. It is further the first runic database to use a Unicode-based approach to encoding runic script as strings of text able to be analysed in bulk instead of at the level of a subset of 30-40 inscriptions.
The photographic documentation has resulted in the first strategic study of the use of different 3D- and 2D-documentation methods on runic inscriptions not carved into stone, but wood, bone and even very fragile materials such as leather. It has yielded important knowledge and guidelines for future documentation of runic inscriptions on organic materials, where the inscription carriers are fragile and photographic documentation must take into account the preservation of the artefact.
The photographic documentation has resulted in the first strategic study of the use of different 3D- and 2D-documentation methods on runic inscriptions not carved into stone, but wood, bone and even very fragile materials such as leather. It has yielded important knowledge and guidelines for future documentation of runic inscriptions on organic materials, where the inscription carriers are fragile and photographic documentation must take into account the preservation of the artefact.