Editing Ragnarök (section)

==Archaeological record==
[[File:Br Olsen;185A, Andreas.jpg|thumb|Thorwald's Cross, on the grounds of Kirk Andreas, Isle of Man]]
Various objects have been identified as depicting events from {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}}.

===Thorwald's Cross===
[[Manx runestones#Thorwald's Cross: Br Olsen;185A (Andreas (III), MM 128)|Thorwald's Cross]], a partially surviving [[Manx runestones|runestone]] erected at Kirk [[Andreas (parish)|Andreas]] on the [[Isle of Man]], depicts a bearded human holding a spear downward at a wolf, his right foot in its mouth, while a large bird sits at his shoulder.{{sfn|Pluskowski|2004|p=158}} [[Rundata]] dates it to 940,<ref name="BrOlsen;185A">{{cite Scandinavian Runic-text Database | name=Br Olsen;185A | edition=2004 | srdb= | runor= | short=yes}}</ref> while Pluskowski dates it to the 11th century.{{sfn|Pluskowski|2004|p=158}} This depiction has been interpreted as Odin, with a [[Huginn and Muninn|raven]] or eagle at his shoulder, being consumed by Fenrir at {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}}.{{sfn|Pluskowski|2004|p=158}}{{sfn|Jansson|1987|p=152}} On the other side of the stone is a depiction of a large cross and another image parallel to the Odin figure that has been described as Christ triumphing over Satan.{{sfn|Hunter|Ralston|1999|p=200}} These combined elements have led to the cross as being described as "[[Syncretism|syncretic art]]," a mixture of [[Norse religion|pagan]] and Christian beliefs.{{sfn|Pluskowski|2004|p=158}}

===Gosforth Cross===
[[File:Gosforth Cross Víðarr detail.jpg|thumb|Gosforth Cross, Close up image focused on Víðarr fighting Fenrir]]
The [[Gosforth Cross]] (920–950), in [[Cumbria]], England, is a standing cross of a typical Anglo-Saxon form, carved on all sides of the long shaft, which is nearly square in section. Based on the mythological stories found in Old Norse texts written in Iceland in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, it has been assumed that the figural carvings of the Gosforth Cross depict Norse mythological episodes connected to Ragnarök.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Doviak |first1=Amanda |date=2021 |title=Doorway to Devotion: Recovering the Christian Nature of the Gosforth Cross |url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/2530135773 |journal=Religions |volume=12 |issue=4 |page=228 |doi=10.3390/rel12040228 |doi-access=free |id={{ProQuest|2530135773}} |via=ProQuest}} </ref> Apart from panels of ornament, the scenes include a Christian [[crucifixion of Jesus|crucifixion]], and possibly another scene in Hell, but the other scenes are generally interpreted as narrative incidents from the {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} story,{{sfn|Bailey|2002|pages=15–23}} even by a scholar as cautious of such interpretations as [[David M. Wilson]].{{sfn|Pluskowski|2004|p=158}}{{sfn|Wilson|1984|p=149–150}} The {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} battle itself may be depicted on the north side.{{sfn|Orchard|1997|p=13}} The cross features various figures depicted in [[Viking art#Borre Style|Borre style]], including a man with a spear facing a monstrous head, with one foot thrust into the beast's forked tongue and on its lower jaw, and the other is against its upper jaw, a scene interpreted as Víðarr fighting Fenrir.{{sfn|Pluskowski|2004|p=158}}

===Ledberg stone===
[[File:Ledbergsstenen 20041231.jpg|thumb|upright|A composite image of three different angles of the Ledberg stone]]

The 11th-century [[Ledberg stone]] in [[Sweden]], similarly to Thorwald's Cross, is regarded as alluding to the final battle of Ragnarök through the stones images.<ref name=":1" /> The stone features a figure with his foot at the mouth of a four-legged beast, and this may also be a depiction of Odin being devoured by Fenrir at {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}}.{{sfn|Jansson|1987|p=152}} Below the beast and the man is a depiction of a legless, helmeted man, with his arms in a prostrate position.{{sfn|Jansson|1987|p=152}} The [[Younger Futhark]] inscription on the stone bears a commonly seen memorial dedication, but is followed by an encoded [[runic alphabet|runic]] sequence that has been described as "mysterious,"{{sfn|MacLeod|Mees|2006|p=145}} and "an interesting magic formula which is known from all over the ancient Norse world."{{sfn|Jansson|1987|p=152}}  

===Skarpåker stone===
On the early 11th-century [[Skarpåker Stone]], from [[Södermanland]], Sweden, a father grieving his dead son used the same verse form, {{lang|non|[[Alliterative verse#Fornyrðislag|fornyrðislag]]}}, as in the ''Poetic Edda'' in the following engraving:

{{verse translation|lang=non
|Iarð skal rifna
ok upphiminn
|Earth shall be riven
and the over-heaven.}}

Jansson (1987) notes that at the time of the inscription, everyone who read the lines would have thought of {{Lang|non|Ragnarök}} and the allusion that the father found fitting as an expression of his grief.{{sfn|Jansson|1987|p=141}} The inscription on the stone depicts a time of religious transition in Viking Age Scandinavia by fusing Christian and Norse components.<ref name=":1" /> The presence of a Christian cross on the stone indicates an attempt to combine Norse prophetic themes with Christian concepts of resurrection and endless life.<ref name=":1" /> The ship on the stone, with its mast shaped like a cross, is believed to represent the trip to the afterlife, fusing Christian imagery with Viking Age culture.<ref name=":1" />