Kiln Fired, Painted Stained Glass
with copper patina, and 4" long copper chain loop for hanging
≈ 4x4"
Vegvísir (Icelandic for 'sign post, wayfinder') is an Icelandic magical stave intended to help the bearer find their way through rough weather.
The symbol is attested in the Huld Manuscript, collected in Iceland by Geir Vigfusson in Akureyri in 1860. A leaf of the manuscript provides an image of the vegvísir, gives its name and declares:
”if this sign is carried, one will never lose one's way in storms or bad weather, even when the way is not known”.
Vegvísir is derived from two Icelandic words, vegur and vísir. Vegur means 'way, road, path', and vísir means 'path, guide'.
The Elder Futhark also known as the Older Futhark, or Germanic Futhark, is the oldest form of the runic alphabets. It was a writing system used by Germanic peoples for Northwest Germanic dialects in the Migration Period. Inscriptions are found on artifacts as well as runestones in Scandinavia, from the 2nd to the 10th centuries.
