Galdrastaves of Iceland
Most people might have heard about those. Or at least seen the Ægishjálmur or Vegvísir symbols circulating around. On shirts, on jewelry, tattooed on people... They are galdrastaves. Galdrastafir. Magic symbols, but not Viking symbols. No. Those are the Icelandic version of sigil magic that was a hot thing back in the Renaissance era. We of course do not know when the tradition actually started, but most symbols we know were recorded circa 1600-1800. Viking may or may not have used them, and thus calling them Viking symbols is inaccurate. My interest in galdrastaves started around 2001 when I read Margit Sandemo's Witchmaster-series. Sandemo was an enormous influence in my writing and worldview, pointing me towards folklore and history, but now I digress, and more of that maybe later. I searched with the limited internet access and limited English skills a 13-year-old Finnish teenager had, but somehow that special interest has stayed with me all these years. I visited ...