More than 1,000 years after his death in present-day Poland, a European king whose nickname lives on through wireless technology is at the center of an archaeological controversy. Chronicles from the Middle Ages say that King Harald “Bluetooth” Gormsson of Denmark got his nickname thanks to a tooth, probably dead, that appeared blue. A chronicle of the time also says that the Viking king was buried in Roskilde, Denmark, in the late 10th century. But a Swedish archaeologist and a Polish researcher recently claimed in separate publications that they had identified his most likely burial site in the village of Wiejkowo, in an area of northwestern Poland that had Viking links in Harald’s time. Marek Kryda, author of the book “Viking Poland,” told The Associated Press that a “pagan mound” he claims to have spotted under Wiejkowo’s 19th-century Roman Catholic church likely contains the king’s remains. Kryda said geological satellite images available on a Polish government portal revealed a round shape that looked like a Viking mound. But Swedish archaeologist Sven Rosborn says Kryda is wrong because Harald, who converted from paganism to Christianity and founded churches in the area, must have been given a proper burial somewhere in the churchyard. The Church of the Immaculate Conception of Wiejkowo is located on top of a small round button. Historians at the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen say they are familiar with the “suggestion” that Wiejkowo is Harald’s burial place. Rosborne detailed his research in his 2021 book “The Viking’s Golden Treasure,” and Kryda disputed some of the Swede’s findings in his own book released this year. Harald, who died in 985, probably in Jomsborg — believed to be the Polish town of Wolin now — was one of the last Viking kings to rule over present-day Denmark, northern Germany, and parts of Sweden and Norway. He spread Christianity in his kingdom. Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson named its Bluetooth wireless technology after the king, reflecting how he united much of Scandinavia during his lifetime. The technology logo is designed from the Norse runic letters for the king’s initials, HB. Rosborn, the former museum director of the city of Malmö, Sweden, was spurred on his quest in 2014 when an 11-year-old girl asked his opinion about a small, soiled coin-like object with an old text in her family’s possession. for decades. Experts have determined that the cast gold disc that sparked Maja Sielski’s curiosity dates back to the 10th century. The Latin inscription on what is now known as the “Curmsun disk” reads: “Harald Gormsson (Curmsun in Latin) king of the Danes, Scania, Jomsborg, city of Aldinburg.” Cielski’s family, who moved to Sweden from Poland in 1986, said the disc came from a hoard found in 1841 in a grave under Wiejkowo Church, which replaced a medieval chapel. The Sielski family came into possession of the record, along with the Wiejkowo parish archives containing medieval parchment chronicles in Latin, in 1945 as the former German region became part of Poland as a result of World War II. A family member who knew Latin understood the value of the chronicles — which date back to the 10th century — and translated some of them into Polish. They mention Harald, another fact that connects the Wiejkowo church with him. The nearby Baltic Sea island and town of Wolin nurtures the region’s Viking history: it has a rune stone in honor of Harald Bluetooth and holds annual Slav and Viking festivals. Kryda says the Curmsun disc is “phenomenal” with its substantial inscription and insists it would be worthwhile to consider Wiejkowo as Harald’s burial site, but there are no current plans for excavation.
title: “Is The King Of Denmark Who Named Bluetooth Buried In Poland " ShowToc: true date: “2022-11-10” author: “Mary Sherer”
Chronicles from the Middle Ages say that King Harald “Bluetooth” Gormsson of Denmark got his nickname thanks to a tooth, probably dead, that appeared blue. A chronicle of the time also says that the Viking king was buried in Roskilde, Denmark, in the late 10th century. But a Swedish archaeologist and a Polish researcher recently claimed in separate publications that they had identified his most likely burial site in the village of Wiejkowo, in an area of northwestern Poland that had Viking links in Harald’s time. Marek Kryda, author of the book “Viking Poland,” told The Associated Press that a “pagan mound” he claims to have spotted under Wiejkowo’s 19th-century Roman Catholic church likely contains the king’s remains. Kryda said geological satellite images available on a Polish government portal revealed a round shape that looked like a Viking mound. But Swedish archaeologist Sven Rosborn says Kryda is wrong because Harald, who converted from paganism to Christianity and founded churches in the area, must have been given a proper burial somewhere in the churchyard. The Church of the Immaculate Conception of Wiejkowo is located on top of a small round button. Historians at the National Museum of Denmark in Copenhagen say they are familiar with the “suggestion” that Wiejkowo is Harald’s burial place. Rosborne detailed his research in his 2021 book The Viking King’s Golden Hoard, and Krida disputed some of the Swede’s findings in his own book released this year. Harald, who died in 985, probably in Jomsborg – believed to be the Polish town of Wolin now – was one of the last Viking kings to rule over present-day Denmark, northern Germany and parts of Sweden and Norway. He spread Christianity in his kingdom. Swedish telecommunications company Ericsson named its Bluetooth wireless technology after the king, reflecting how he united much of Scandinavia during his lifetime. The technology logo is designed from the Norse runic letters for the king’s initials, HB. Rosborn, the former museum director of the city of Malmö, Sweden, was spurred on his quest in 2014 when an 11-year-old girl asked his opinion about a small, soiled coin-like object with an old text in her family’s possession. for decades. Experts have determined that the cast gold disc that sparked Maja Sielski’s curiosity dates back to the 10th century. The Latin inscription on what is now known as the ‘Curmsun disk’ reads: ‘Harald Gormsson (Curmsun in Latin) king of the Danes, Scania, Jomsborg, city of Aldinburg’. Cielski’s family, who moved to Sweden from Poland in 1986, said the disc came from a hoard found in 1841 in a grave under Wiejkowo Church, which replaced a medieval chapel. The Sielski family came into possession of the disc, along with the Wiejkowo parish archives containing medieval parchment chronicles in Latin, in 1945 as the former German region became part of Poland as a result of World War II. A family member who knew Latin understood the value of the chronicles — dating as far back as the 10th century — and translated some of them into Polish. They mention Harald, another fact that connects the Wiejkowo church with him. The nearby Baltic Sea island and town of Wolin nurtures the region’s Viking history: it has a rune stone in honor of Harald Bluetooth and holds annual Slav and Viking festivals. Kryda says the Curmsun disc is “phenomenal” with its substantial inscription and insists it would be worthwhile to consider Wiejkowo as Harald’s burial site, but there are no current plans for excavation.
