VOLOS: A silver ring from a Viking-era grave in Birka, Sweden, has a distinctive history: it is the first ring with Arabic inscription from that era found in Scandinavia.
The ring, which has an inscription that says “To Allah” or “For Allah” in Kufic Arabic, is physical evidence suggesting there was direct contact between the Vikings of Sweden and the Muslim world, in this case the Seljuks of Asia Minor.
The woman’s grave dates to about 850 AD. Also found in the woman’s grave were items from India, the Caucasus or Yemen and possibly other locales. Archaeologists think the ring may be a signet ring that was used to mark or stamp documents.
The ring is relatively recent compared to some objects from the East found in Scandinavia. Ancient Origins reported in December 2014 that scientists working in Denmark unearthed glass blue beads crafted in an ancient Egyptian workshop for King Tutankhamun that made its way north to Europe 3,400 years ago. The find suggested there was contact between the two regions long ago via possible ancient trade routes. Those beads too were from graves of women.
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