The oldest Maps in England; Carved Stones in the North

The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The oldest Maps in England; Carved Stones in the North Björn Vernharðsson & Eydís Björnsdóttir 2 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The oldest Maps in England; Carved Stones in the North Copyright © 2022 Björn Vernharðsson & Eydís Björnsdóttir Publisher; Hugfari, Reykjavík, Iceland [email protected] Reykjavík 2022 All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. ISBN: 979 - 8840846070 Independently published 3 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North CONTENTS Introduction............................................................................................................................................... 5 1. The Map carved in the Gainford Stone Cross.................................................................................... 8 2. Land of the Dead on the western side of the map .............................................................................. 10 2. The Land of the Etins in the north ....................................................................................................... 13 3. The eastern side of the county ............................................................................................................ 14 4. The southern part ................................................................................................................................ 16 5. Middlesbrough and area around......................................................................................................... 17 6. Harts or Deer ....................................................................................................................................... 18 The Great Urswick Stone Cross ............................................................................................................... 21 The Bewcastle cross ................................................................................................................................ 25 Further discussion ................................................................................................................................... 26 Other pictures in the stones ................................................................................................................ 27 The two most important dwarfs ......................................................................................................... 27 When were these crosses made?........................................................................................................ 29 The conclusion......................................................................................................................................... 30 Other books by the author .................................................................................................................. 31 Other papers ....................................................................................................................................... 31 Reference text ..................................................................................................................................... 32 References ........................................................................................................................................... 32 4 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Introduction This book is a sequel to the books; Völuspá, The holy land in the North-East. The History of Northumbria to the 9th Century”i and later “Völuspá set in Stone in Gosforth”ii. The Carvings on the Gosforth Stone Cross Explained”. Both previous books deal with the Old Völuspá poem and its setting in Northumbria (Deira), now County Durham. It was evident that the carvings in the Gosforth Stone Cross depicted the main emphasis in the Völuspá poem and the setting was in County Durham with its central setting in Hunwick which is a small town 10 km west of Durham. This central setting in the county indicated that the field in Hunwick was a serious contender for the battle of Brunanburh in the 937, when King Athelstan fought his adversaries in the northern alliance. Our book “Brunanburh; Located Through Egil‘s Saga“iii, deals with the premises for the battle and the reasoning for the battle to have been fought out in Hunwick, in County Durham. The Gainford stone crosses come from Gainford in County Durham, which stands on the banks of the River Tyne. This place was where people crossed the river in ancient times. Image Source – The Antiquities of Gainford. John Richard Walbran, 1846 5 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The stones were discovered when the church was being restored in 1864 1. Image Source – The Sculptured Stones of Scotland Vol. 2 John Stuart. 1856 Gainford is about 10 miles south of the field in Hunwick and is on the riverbank of the river Tees, about 2,5 miles west of Piercebridge that was on the Old Roman Road called Dere 1 https://www.nationalchurchestrust.org/church/st-mary-gainford 6 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Street. This road was from York and north up to Scotland and was by the side of the field in Hunwick. These crosses are now at display in the Open Treasure exhibition at the Durham Cathedral. We will, in this paper, mainly deal with one picture in one of the crosses which is the complicated Celtic Cross in the lower part of one side of the cross shown here below. Image Source – The Sculptured Stones of Scotland Vol. 2 John Stuart. 1856 It is evident that this carving of a Celtic Cross depicts the main areas of the road system in the Ancient and Roman County Durham as will be covered in our text. This pattern is familiar after many years of studying the organization of the ancient Northumbria and in this text, we will compare the carving on the cross to the toponymy of County Durham and closest areas. 7 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North 1. The Map carved in the Gainford Stone Cross Following is the image of the cross laid over the map of the area. The image is transparent and shows its relation to the Ordnance Survey map of the Roman Period in Britain. Transparent picture of the Gainford cross laid over picture of an OS Historical map of Roman Britain iv The image of the Gainford stone slightly skewed fits extremely well with the road system and known holy sites at the time. This tilting is possibly due to the tilting of the earth which is variable or it can be possible that the due north is aligned with the Pole star in a given time seen from Hunwick or Gainford or in some place in the area. It is clear that the carving design centres around Hunwick and the ancient Vinovia fort and the immediate roads are clearly in line with the carving on the cross. There are some deviances but these are minimal and can possibly be explained with further research and improved technique in working the maps and the overlay. The map clearly shows that most important sites do sit perfectly on the pointed edges like Hexham, Epiacum Roman Fort (Whitley Castle), and then other important sites as St Peters in 8 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Monkwearmouth, St. Hilda in Hartlepool, Middlesbrough, Richmond on the outer rim and Durham and other places in the inner circles. There is one deviance from this as the Freebrough Hill that stands for Freyja and Baldersdale that stands for the god Baldur do not seem to fit to the picture. It might indicate that this map was carved late in the ninth century at the time when the old society was breaking down and was overtaken by Guthrum and his Great Heathen Army in 878 and the people from the Danelaw cleansed out the former ruling class, so efficiently that in Egil’s sagav it is stated that on the time of the battle of Brunanburh, “then in Northumbria people of means where Danes, either by their mother side or by the father side or both”. Northumbria had been cleaned out of all noblemen and all people of means and money. The Northumbrians had either fled their county or been killed by the invading force fifty years after it was ruled forcefully by Guthfrith and his Great Heathen Army. In Völuspá it is described that Freyja was sold out and the god Baldur was killed, which indicates that the importance of these gods was not in favour of the new rulers and within the Catholic church, but the identity of these deities was depicted as Halloween. Baldersdale in the west is in the line of sunset at Halloween and Freebrough in the east was in the line of sunrise at Halloween. But it is possible that this design on the stone in Gainsford is building on other and earlier designs on other stones. 9 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North 2. Land of the Dead on the western side of the map The western side of the map depicts the land of the dead according to the Grímnismál poem. Gainford Hove Arkle Town Arkle Town Western side of the map with overlay. 10 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North For the Northumbrians and the people of Deira the importance of the western direction was associated with death. That is where the sun dies every day with its sunset. In verse 31 in the Grímnismál poem in the Poetic Edda’svi there are following lines that clearly describe this situation of how the land of the dead was organized: Three roots do spread In threefold ways Beneath the ash of Yggdrasil; Dwell etins under one, under the other, Hel, under the third; Mithgard’s men. Three roots beneath the ash of Yggdrasil mark three positions. First is the position of the sunset on summer solstice, which is Hexham (Hexes are Etins) seen from the Mithgard, which is the centre site for the settlement. The second root is Helwith which marks the sunset at Winter Solstice and at the same time the southern border of the “Land of the Dead”. Helwith is about 20 odd miles away from Hunwick. In Icelandic the name for hell is “helvíti” in Danish it is “helvede”. This was a very important place in the mind of the people at that time in Northumbria and can be understood as the Christmas today. This is the place where the sun goes down on the shortest day of the year. This is how far south the power of the night has, but not further south than that. The third root is the site of “Mithgard’s Men” which is the field in Hunwick. The west is also marked by Baldersdale, but Baldur was the blind god, who was killed with a mistletoe arrow according to the Völuspá poem. This site is not shown to be as significant as the other sites in the Gainford cross, but it might be possible that Halloween had fallen out of favour when the carvings were made. The importance of these ancient religious sites are clearly depicted in the carving on the Gainford stone as can be seen on the map above. Hexham is on the border of the western side of the land of the Etins with Jarrow on the eastern side. These segments had to be organized according to the path of the sun and this 11 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North method was seemingly also used to organize the transport system according to the carvings on the Gainford Stone. The line to Whitley Castle is marked by many ancient places that have been shown to have been important on the day, such as Nenthead, Alston, Stanhope and Frosterley alongside the River Wear in the Wear Valley, so the river can be seen as the premise for the line shown in the carving of the cross. Alston seems to be one of the most important sites according to the carvings in the cross which is evidence of Roman activity in the area, as well as the barrows dated between 2000 BC and 1700 BC.2 The position of Gainford can be seen as it is close to Piercebridge, which was the road crossing over the Roman Road leading north, the Dere Street. There was also a crossing over the River Tees at Gainford in ancient times. 2 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alston,_Cumbria 12 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North 2. The Land of the Etins in the north The northern part of the map with an overlay. The northern part was dedicated to the etins in the Völuspá poem. It was thought that this part of the land where the sun never shines over was the land of the etins. In this case it was from Hexham in the west to Jarrow in the east. It is remarkable how well the carvings on the cross do follow the lines of the River Tyne in the north. The line of sunrise at summer solstice runs through to Sunderland where the sun is fully up at Summer Solstices. The Roman Road north to Hexham does relate with the carvings in the cross, but there is some deviation on the northern part, which might have some explanations in other roads at the time. Other roads do seem to fit remarkably well to the carvings on the cross. 13 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North 3. The eastern side of the county Here it can be seen that Sunderland, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough are on the outer edge of the Gainford Map. Jarrow The eastern side of the map with overlay. The line through from northwest from Whitley Castle runs to Ingleby Greenbow. This line is marking the halfway between equinoxes and winter solstices. Hornby does indicate its importance as a site that marks one of the corners of the southern borders. Other lines conform rather well to roads and rivers in the area. Sunderland is in the line of sunrise, where the sun is fully up at summer solstices. 14 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Hartlepool was due east from Hunwick and was therefore the important marker for marking Easter and equinoxes. Freebrough Hill is outside the map and there is no line directly towards it, similarly as Baldersdale in the western side. The line to Freebrough Hill marks the time of Halloween, which later fell out of favour. The carving on the cross does represent the road crossing north of Hunwick where it goes to the north and to Durham. The north-eastern part extends out to the sea. One explanation for this seems to be an artistic and possibly some mythical reasons, that is unknown to us presently. 15 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North 4. The southern part The southern part is marked by Richmond on the outer circle and close by there is Brompton on Swale, Scorton and Catterick and Easby Abbey. The southern part of the map. To the west there is Helwith that divides the south from the land of the dead in the west. Generally, this border seems to be marked by the river Swale. South of there is north Yorkshire. Richmond was known as Hinderlage in those times, it changed its name after the cleansing and “Harrying of the North” in 1086. Most of these ancient religious sites are represented in the carvings of the Gainford map. It is important to do further research on the sites that are represented in the map, to gain a better understanding on the organization of the old society in Northumbria or Deira. 16 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North 5. Middlesbrough and area around We want to give a special attention to the area around Middlesbrough. It was originally a Benedictine priory. In 686 a monastic cell was consecrated by St Cuthbert at the request of St Hilda. The manor of Mydilsburgh as it was called belonged to Whitby Abbey and Guisborough Priory3. The site is on the line from Hunwick, via Billingham or Norton over to Guisborough to Freebrough Hill and this line depicts the sunrise at Halloween seen from Hunwick. The map of the area around Middlesbrough It can be assumed from the map that all the area from Stockton to Billingham to Middlesbrough was an area of importance. The line below that leads to Ingelby Greenhow and is through Stainton, Thornaby, Bishopston and north of the river Tees there is also Hartburn. The lowest line leads to Hornby (Horn means corner) and this is the direction of the Sunrise at Winter Solstice seen from Hunwick. Hornby is also 20.5 miles from Hunwick as is Richmond and Catterick in the south and Hartlepool in the east. This line crosses Newton, Neasham and Sockburn. All these places can be referred to as ancient religious sites. 33 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middlesbrough 17 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North 6. Harts or Deer Richmond was known as Hinderlage in the times before the county was occupied by the Great Heathen Army and its name was changed after the cleansing and “The Harrying of the North” in 1086. On both crosses there are pictures that may be assumed of deer that might refer to the lines in the old Grímnismál poem, when describing the holy Yggdrasil’s ash. In one of the crosses there are two deer, but only one shown in the other. There could have been two deer originally as that cross is broken in the middle of the picture. In the Grímnismál poem there were four deer eating away the stem of the Yggdrasil’s Ash. Dvalinn was one of the deer and is also counted as one of the dwarfs in the Völuspá poem. These four deer represented the four most important lines from Mithgard to the border of the county. There are two deer shown in the Gosforth Stone carving as well and there these deer seem to represent the border of the county or the two main offices in the old society. Hartlepool is due east from Hunwick, and on the line from Hunwick there are two places called Hart. One is near to Hartlepool some 3.5 miles to the west and the other near to Hunwick or five miles to the east. Hartburn is on the line from Hunwick to Ingelby Greenhow, just north of the River Tees. Due south is Richmond, earlier named Hinderlage, right on the border of the map just like Hartlepool. 18 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Harts in place names in Deira/Northumbria One such important line was the marking of the sunrise at Summer Solstice which is the line to Durham seen from Hunwick and possibly is Gateshead representing one of those deer, as it is due north from Hunwick. The name of the Roman Road going through the county from York and north over Richmond at the border via Hunwick to Gateshead and then further north was Derestreet or Deorstreetvii. That name is clearly indicated in the two deer in the Gainford crosses as well as can be seen in the Gosforth stone. One of the pieces of evidence that the battle of Brunanburh was on the Dere Street, the Roman Road that was from York north to Scotland is due to the name of the road. Dere is same as Deor or Deer. Deer was used in many instances to signify the organization of the part of Deira that is now known as County Durham. It can therefore be deducted that Deira draws its name from these references to Deer in the organization of the land. There is a reference to Deer in the Völuspá poem and the Stone Cross in Gosforth signifying 19 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Deira. There is a reference to Deer in the Grímnismál poem that can be understood signifying Deira and there are deer in the Gainford stone crosses. Gainford is in Northumbria 10 miles due south of Hunwick close to the Dere Street. There was a local district in this part of Deira with the name Hartness which is now lost, according to the English Place Names website4. And there is reference to deer in a poem by Egill Skallagrímsson where it is said: Hart-Road hills obey Heroic Athelstan's high sway. It actually is said in the poem that the battle was close to Dere Street, the road from York to the River Tyne and north to Scotland and now the hills by the Hart-Road obey Athelstan’s will. 4 https://epns.nottingham.ac.uk/browse/id/53285389b47fc40a38000002-Hartness%28lost%29 20 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The Great Urswick Stone Cross In the process of writing this book on the carvings on the Gainford stone crosses, we learnt from Gordon Emery that there is a similar carving in the Great Urswick Stone Cross. That cross has a similar history as the Gainford Stone Cross. Both crosses are most likely from the middle of the ninth century. Both crosses have been demolished and used for church construction. Both crosses were revealed 1000 years later and both with carving that simulates the landscape of the area, where they were found. The Celtic knot on the Great Urswick Stone Cross 21 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North This Celtic knot deviates from the one on the Gainford Stone Cross. This knot is not as round and clearly depicts a different area than the Gainford carving does. Collingwood dated this stone at the earliest to 8505, which is close to my estimate for the Gainford cross. This cross was found in 1911 when the work was undertaken at the church6. If an image of the carving is set over an OS map of the Roman and Ancient Cumbria then it is evident that the image does relate well to land. Image of the Great Urswick Stone on OS map of Ancient Cumbria. 5 6 https://www.megalithic.co.uk/article.php?sid=11455 https://furnesshiddenheritage.blogspot.com/2014/04/an-ancient-cross-and-christian-monument.html 22 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Image of the Bewcastle stone on OS map of Ancient Cumbria. The carving does show the coastline and most of the Roman Roads. The Hadrian Wall seems to be well represented as well in both stones. The carving clearly depicts two circular parts one to the north with Carlisle in the north and Penrith in the southeast on the outer rim, but Old Carlisle or Wigton as the centre site. 23 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Each circular parts does have four smaller circular sites around four sites that seem to represent the centre in each. Abbey in the northwest then Carlisle in the northeast. Penrith in the southeast and Cockermouth in the southwest. Keswick is an interesting site placed in between these two grand circular sites in the north and in the south. Ambleside is clearly shown as the centre or as the most prominent site in the southern ring. In the southern ring there is Broughton-in-Furness clearly set in the centre of the south western side. Buttermere can be the centre of the north-western site and possibly there was a thing-site near Ullswater, but it is likely that Keswick was used as a thing-site or the Ambleside for these parts. Then Kendal is clearly the centre site for the southwestern part. It is interesting that there is reference to deer in Cumbria as for instance in Deer Fell west of the Castlerigg stone rings. It can be expected that Cumbria was organised in the manner as the maps show. There might have been minor assemblies in the quadrant sites and then major assemblies in the most prominent sites in Old Carlisle, Keswick and then Ambleside. It is likely that Penrith then later rises up and becomes the most prominent site in the area. 24 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The Bewcastle cross That cross is of the most complicated design. The cross has at least 5 maps on the north and on the south sides that are of a similar design as the Gainford and the Great Urswick stones. Image of the Bewcastle stone. 25 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The images in the Bewcastle stone cross are likely to reveal mapping on other areas in the North. Further discussion There are some issues worth considering in the context of this text. It is evident that the carvings on the Gainford Stone are heavily related to the toponymy, rivers and transport links of County Durham or the old Northumbria south of the River Tyne. Old important religious sites are represented in the map as well. It is possible that this stone is from the late 7th century or early 8th century7. The relation with the old poetry like the Völuspá and Grímnismál poems is also established in this text. The carvings in the cross and the cross itself can be expected from the late ninth century and possibly after the invasion of the Great Heathen Army, but it cannot be ruled out that this carving is much earlier as it can be expected according to the Völuspá poem, that the stones are possibly a bit earlier and from the middle of the ninth century. It is quite possible that this carving is based on earlier work and it is therefore likely that similar crosses are to be found in County Durham, that might be similar in design. It confirms that oral poems that live with people for centuries do not deviate that much from other sourcesviii. It is likely that the map on the stones might uncover important sites in the area and might give important information on such sites. 7 https://furnesshiddenheritage.blogspot.com/2014/04/an-ancient-cross-and-christian-monument.html 26 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Other pictures in the stones Looking at other pictures in the crosses then we can see that this relation to the old poetry is noticeable. The two most important dwarfs Above the proposed map there is a picture of two persons. The two persons above the cross in the Gainford stone. Image Source – The Sculptured Stones of Scotland Vol. 2 John Stuart. 1856 It is not known who these two persons are, but there is a clue in the Völuspá poem. In earlier stanzas there are eight stanzas describing the dwarfs and in the second stanza in that sequence there we have the description of the most important dwarfs. The initial stanza in this sequence described the king and now the attention is given to the profession of the people. Móðsognir was the highest of the court as “the speaker” in the UK parliament and Durinn the second as most likely the priest or as a bishop. There was Law speaker (móðsognir)8, greatest of creations, all dwarfs, but Durinn9 second; manlike creations many they created, dwarfs in earth, as Durinn ordered. Móðsognir (Móð is the same as Mót in Old English10) was probably the chairman or the 8 https://bosworthtoller.com/23199 Bosworth, Joseph, et al. “An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary Online.” Edited by Thomas Northcote Toller and Others, Dúr, Faculty of Arts, Charles University in Prague, 21 Mar. 2010, bosworth.ff.cuni.cz/008122. 9 27 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North speaker of the court or the Thing. He or she was the person who read out the law and chaired the meetings in all assemblies. Durinn was most likely the priest or the keeper of the temple. Here introduced as the second most important person and usually the only official paid for his duty in the old society. The word Durinn was related to the door and that fits nicely to his duty to guard the temple. It is likely that he organized funerals and was keeper of the graveyard. It is possible that Durinn might have evolved to be related to the god Thor. According to Gibbon in the “Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire”, Tacitus is referred to have said that the two main officials in Burgundy were the king or the general called “hendinos” and the high priest called “sinistus”ix. Sinistus relates to the Durinn as the main priest in the poem. It is more likely that “Móðsognir” was the leader in the Thing, when it was assembled. The speaker of the field was a confidant but not a king. He was the expert of the law and chaired all meetings such as the court, but he was not a ruler or the one that assumes power in the times of uncertainty. Bosworth, Joseph. “mót.” In An Anglo-Saxon Dictionary Online, Edited by Thomas Northcote Toller, Christ Sean, and Ondřej Tichy. Prague: Faculty of Arts, Charles University, 2014. https://bosworthtoller.com/23190. 10 28 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The Valþjófsstaða door in Iceland The Valþjófsstaða door in the National Museum of Iceland does have similar carving on the lower half of the door as can be seen on the following picture. Picture of the Valþjófsstaða door in the National Museum of Iceland It is quite possible that the door does depict a map of a county in Northern England as well as the other carvings show. The carving does follow similar build-up even though the carvings are more complicated, but that can be expected from wood carvings to be more refined rather than stone carvings. That has to be given further research. When were these crosses made? The invasion of the Great Heathen Army in 868, then the Danes laid waste the country from York to the Tyne and possessed all the province of Northumberland. If this carving is to be Viking in origin, then that must be shown in other carvings with similar design and indication that it was used to navigate through the county. These carvings could be from that time and after 868, but that must be researched if there are any such carvings south of the River Humber to substantiate that claim. These carvings could be from an earlier time and the people of Deira would have taken them down to make it more difficult for the invaders to roam around in the county, much like removing all the signposts on roads in Britain in WWII. It is possible that this design is based on a much older design in other crosses or stones in the old land of Deira. Hopefully it can be established where this design originated from, as this design is clearly a wellrefined design with clear indication of its use for navigation. 29 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The conclusion We can imagine that people may say that this is just a coincidence, but we challenge those with that in mind to go through maps with the carvings in the Gainford or the Great Urswick stone as a template to see if they can find such a detailed fit as described here. It is rather hoped that further research might reveal that other areas in England were organized in a similar manner as is shown in the carvings in the Gainford Stone Cross, relating to the situation in County Durham and in the Great Urswick Stone Cross showing Cumbria. The design of the stones reveals the organization of the counties and the existence of Mithgard that Tolkien was searching for. Such a Mithgard was probably in each county. The Gainford stone might have been standing in Hunwick or by the roadside of a Roman Road or on some important cross roads in the county. The stone cross might have been at later time moved to Gainsford and then hidden in the church building. It is more difficult to say about the Great Urswick Stone, as Great Urswick might have been one of the most prominent sites in Cumbria in the ninth century. There are many stones in the area that depict the deer in the carvings and its meaning is in old poetry and in the name of the Roman Road going through the land as well. It is likely to be the meaning of the word Deira, that was used for the land north of York and towards the River Tyne. It can be assumed that Durham was formerly a Deira-ham11 and then adding to the common theme of Deer in Deira county. It is important that the relation of the deer and the meaning of it in the history of the ancient Deira and Cumbria is researched. The authors have indication of maps covering other areas in England such as the Northumberland and the borderlands as well as Yorkshire. That is work in progress and our results will be revealed in due time. P.S. The authors want to thank David Shotten for his assistance, Tony Fox for his proofreading and last but not least Emery Gordon for his proofreading and his advice on the Great Urswick stones and the Bewcastle Stone Cross, which was priceless contribution as to verify the original idea of the meaning of the carving on the Gainford stone. Saying that, all mistakes are ours. 11 Suggestion by Gordon Emery, that we can fully accept to be a feasible origin of the name. The other possibility for the origin of Durham could be a reference to Door as a part of a religious site. 30 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North Other books by the author Following books have been published and can be obtained in printed form from Amazon and some as an open source as well on www.academia.edu. Björn Vernharðsson. 2022 Völuspá; Skráð í stein í Gosforth Björn Vernharðsson. 2021 Völuspá, set in Stone in the Gosforth Cross https://www.academia.edu/55713425/V%C3%B6lusp%C3%A1_set_in_Stone_in_Gosforth_The_Carvings_on_the _Gosforth_Stone_Cross_Explained Björn Vernharðsson. 2021 Völuspá; The Holy Land in the North East. https://www.academia.edu/44500788/V%C3%B6lusp%C3%A1_The_holy_land_in_the_North_East_The_History _of_Northumbria_to_the_9th_Century Björn Vernharðsson. 2022 Egill í Englandi, Egils saga og enskar heimildir Stefán Björnsson & Björn Vernharðsson. 2022. Egils saga – King Athelstan died in the wrong chapter https://www.academia.edu/81777300/Egils_Saga_King_Athelstan_dies_in_the_wrong_chapter_%C3 %A1n_fors%C3%AD%C3%B0u Stefán Björnsson & Björn Vernharðsson. 2021 Brunanburh Located through Egil’s saga 3. Edition https://www.academia.edu/44414461/Brunanburh_located_through_Egils_saga_3rd_Edition Björn Vernharðsson & Stefán Björnsson. 2022 Ohthere and Wulfstan visiting King Alfred and Egil’s saga https://www.academia.edu/77856694/Ohthere_and_Wulfstan_visiting_King_Alfred_and_Egils_saga Other papers Following papers can be obtained as an open source in www.academia.edu. Brunanburh poem in Icelandic tradition of basic rhythmic structure as described in Snorra Edda https://www.academia.edu/41587228/Brunanburh_poem_in_Icelandic_tradition_of_basic_rhythmic_structure_ as_described_in_Snorra_Edda 31 The oldest map of England; Carved stones in the North The land of the Gods in Northumbria in Völuspá https://www.academia.edu/43502290/The_land_of_the_Gods_in_Northumbria_in_V%C3%B6lusp%C3%A1 Vinovia, Weondune or Vína https://www.academia.edu/44079362/Vinovia_Weondune_or_V%C3%ADna Burial sites possibly related to the Battle of Brunanburh https://www.academia.edu/43248663/Burial_sites_possibly_related_to_the_Battle_of_Brunanburh The Brunanburh poem and Völuspá Two Anglo-Icelandic poems compared https://www.academia.edu/43773751/The_Brunanburh_poem_and_V%C3%B6lusp%C3%A1_Two_Anglo_Icelan dic_poems_compared English places with Sutton names And Suttungar in Hávamál https://www.academia.edu/43317747/English_places_with_Sutton_names_And_Suttungar_in_H%C3%A1vam% C3%A1l English places with Billings names https://www.academia.edu/43086517/English_places_with_Billings_names Reference text Unknown. (Approx 1220). Eddukvæði. Edited: Ólafur Briem. Veröld. Reykjavík. (1985) References i Björn Vernharðsson. (2021). Völuspá; The Holy Land in the North East. Reykjavík, Hugfari. Björn Vernharðsson. (2022). Völuspá set in Stone in Gosforth. The Carvings on the Gosforth Stone Cross Explained. Reykjavík. Hugfari. iii Stefán Björnsson & Björn Vernharðsson. (2021). Brunanburh, located through Egil’s saga. 3. Útgáfa. Reykjavík. Hugfari. iv OS Historical map. (2016). Roman Britain. Ordnance Survey Ltd. v Egils saga. Edited: Bergljót S. Kristjánsdóttir og Svanhildur Óskarsdóttir. Mál og Menning. Sígildar sögur 2. Reykjavík, (2008). vi Edda. Translated and introduced by Anthony Faulkes. London. J. M. Dent & Sons Ltd. vii John Richard Walbran. (1846). Antiquities of Gainford, in the County of Durham; comprising the Baronial and Ecclesiastical History of that place and of Barnardcastle with descriptive notices of Raby Castle, Staindrop Church, Denton, and many other objects of Antiquity in their vicinity. Ripon. W. Harrison. https://books.google.is/books?id=KvkGAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA12&lpg=PA12&dq=gainford+stone+crosses&source=bl &ots=UF245iQkGa&sig=ACfU3U1N5ylKUDFD3WKUZzPu6_a3huftrA&hl=is&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjwzii9vf4AhUxSEEAHftVBDcQ6AF6BAghEAM#v=onepage&q=gainford%20stone%20crosses&f=false viii Björn Vernharðsson. (2022). Völuspá set in Stone in Gosforth. The Carvings on the Gosforth Stone Cross Explained. Reykjavík. Hugfari. ix Einar Olgeirsson. (1956). Ættarsamfélag og ríkisvald í þjóðveldi Íslendinga. Reykjavík. Heimskringla. ii 32