Skip to main content

The elaborate, rune-like marks carved into these wooden items served as personal signatures for men who may not have been literate, acting as potent, singular identifiers that allowed them to assert ownership and presence in a world where writing was often reserved for the elite.

The elaborate, rune-like marks carved into these wooden items served as personal signatures for men who may not have been literate, acting as potent, singular identifiers that allowed them to assert ownership and presence in a world where writing was often reserved for the elite.