Canterbury charm

The Canterbury charm is an Old Norse runic charm discovered inserted in the margin of an Anglo-Saxon manuscript from the year 1073.^[1]

The original runes, with Latin transliteration

Inscription

The runes are clear, and the transliteration of the runes is straight-forward (spaces between words not present in the original):

kuril

Gyrils

sarþuara

sārþvara

far

far

þu

þū

nu

nū!

funtin

Fundinn

is

eʀ

tu

þū!

þur

Þōrr

uigi

vīgi

þik

þik,

¶

 

þorsa

þursa

trutin

drōttinn,

iuril

Gyrils

sarþuara

sārþvara.

uiþr

Viðr

aþra uari

aðravari.

kuril sarþuara far þu nu funtin is tu þur uigi þik ¶ þorsa trutin iuril sarþuara uiþr {aþra uari}

Gyrils sārþvara far þū nū! Fundinn eʀ þū! Þōrr vīgi þik, {} þursa drōttinn, Gyrils sārþvara. Viðr aðravari.

Gyrill's wound-tap, you go now! You are found! May Thor hallow you, lord of the trolls. Gyrill's wound-tap. Against pus in the veins (blood poisoning).^[2]

Similarly, the charm is translated by Macleod and Mees (2006) as:

Gyril wound-causer, go now! You are found. May Thor bless you, lord of ogres! Gyril wound-causer. Against blood-vessel pus!^[1]

Interpretation

The charm is intended for use against a specific ailment, described as "blood-vessel pus." MacLeod and Mees note that while Thor is not revered in surviving sources for his medical abilities, he was well attested as harboring enmity towards giants and as a protector of mankind. MacLeod and Mees compare the charm to the 11th-century Kvinneby amulet (where Thor is also called upon to provide protection), the formula structure of the Sigtuna amulet I, and the inscription on a then-recently discovered rib bone also from Sigtuna, Sweden.^[1]