In December 2014, there were reports of the rediscovery of a crude gold disc in what is now Poland, near the ancient location of the viking stronghold of Jomsborg. It's history is convoluted and accounts somewhat contradictory - it is said to have formed part of a viking hoard originally found in the crypt of a ruined church in 1841. During WWII the disc fell into the hands of a Polish army officer (I have seen different accounts of how this happened) and the value of the disc not recognized. In 2014, his great-grandchild took the interesting trinket to show her teacher and the rest, as they say, is history (perhaps). The disc has come to be called the 'Curmsun disc'. Why do we care? The disc contains a curious inscription, which if contemporary would be one of the oldest pieces of genealogical evidence regarding viking-era Scandinavia not found on a rune stone. Specifically it reads +ARALD CVRMSVN+ REX AD TAN ER+SCON+J VMN+CIV ALDIN+ Which has been interpreted as: Harald Gormson, King of Danes, Scania, Jomsborg, and Oldenburg (there are various alternative interpretations). There is some dispute as to whether it is authentic or a later forgery, and those in the 'authentic camp' all seem to have a different interpretation of when and why the disc was cast (it is agreed it was cast and not struck). Is anyone aware of any published scholarly analysis of this item? (hopefully not requiring me to learn Polish or Danish to read) The following two Academia.edu deposits appear respectable, but I am intereted in what the broader scholarly community is making of it. https://www.academia.edu/9647410/A_unique_object_from_Harald_Bluetooth_s_time._2015_ https://www.academia.edu/29233334/The_Curmsun_Disc_-_Harald_Bluetooth_s_Golden_Seal See also: http://www.thecurmsundisc.com/ taf

On 10/05/2017 9:47 AM, taf wrote: > In December 2014, there were reports of the rediscovery of a crude gold disc in what is now Poland, near the ancient location of the viking stronghold of Jomsborg. It's history is convoluted and accounts somewhat contradictory - it is said to have formed part of a viking hoard originally found in the crypt of a ruined church in 1841. During WWII the disc fell into the hands of a Polish army officer (I have seen different accounts of how this happened) and the value of the disc not recognized. In 2014, his great-grandchild took the interesting trinket to show her teacher and the rest, as they say, is history (perhaps). The disc has come to be called the 'Curmsun disc'. > > Why do we care? The disc contains a curious inscription, which if contemporary would be one of the oldest pieces of genealogical evidence regarding viking-era Scandinavia not found on a rune stone. > > Specifically it reads > > +ARALD > CVRMSVN+ > REX AD TAN > ER+SCON+J > VMN+CIV > ALDIN+ > > Which has been interpreted as: Harald Gormson, King of Danes, Scania, Jomsborg, and Oldenburg (there are various alternative interpretations). There is some dispute as to whether it is authentic or a later forgery, and those in the 'authentic camp' all seem to have a different interpretation of when and why the disc was cast (it is agreed it was cast and not struck). > > Is anyone aware of any published scholarly analysis of this item? (hopefully not requiring me to learn Polish or Danish to read) The following two Academia.edu deposits appear respectable, but I am intereted in what the broader scholarly community is making of it. > > https://www.academia.edu/9647410/A_unique_object_from_Harald_Bluetooth_s_time._2015_ > > https://www.academia.edu/29233334/The_Curmsun_Disc_-_Harald_Bluetooth_s_Golden_Seal > > See also: http://www.thecurmsundisc.com/ > You may have to wait a while yet - according to Karen Schousboe in November 2014 (here: http://www.medievalhistories.com/harold-bluetooths-talisman-sensational-find-fake/), "However, the field is decidedly not covered and we still lack a more detailed technical and philological examination by scholars and scientists." With something as fishy as this object, experts may be in no hurry to take a plunge. Peter Stewart