Runestones around Nykoping are being washed

Runestones around Nykoping 

are being washed

Right now the rune-stones around Nyköping is being washed, those who are heavily

covered with algae, mosses and lichens are wrapped in clay prepared with industrial

alcohol. Then they are covered in plastic to retain moisture and the plastic have to 

stay on for a few weeks. The clay softens and the alcohol kills the damaging lichen. 

With regards to the culture and historical value, this is nothing that is done on a 

regular basis, it was 20 years since they last were cleaned like this, you have to be 

very careful since every time you have to wash the rune-stones the surface abrade. 

For inscriptions to be peserved for the future, the stones are protected and conserved. 

The care includes keeping the stones clean and to fill the inscriptions with paint to 

make them clearer. The cleaning of the rune-stones must be performed by a stone 

conservator with specialist skills, and the filling of the inscriptions are being made 

by a runeolog.

The oldest inscriptions found in Sweden are at the spearhead from Mos on the 

island Gotland. It dates from the mid 200`s AD. There are only five runes on the 

spear blade, translated into Latin letters, it says "GAOIS" nobody knows for 

sure what that means.