Community Print 3D Print of Scan The Heritage Competition

A thousand years ago, a woman had a bridge built over a small stream. After many days of hard work, she could finally look upon her work completed. Curiously, the woman would never cross her bridge. Hundreds of years passed and the bridge would become lost to time. Next to its location, however, remained a stone which stands still today. It reads: "Gullaug had the bridge made for her daughter Gillaugar's soul, the wife of Ulf. Öpir carved". The construction of a physical bridge is thought to have played an important role in helping the souls of diseased loves ones cross into the afterlife. Though little is known for sure, it's believed these bridges were built solely for this purpose and not because the locals needed a bridge. This stone comes from a curious period in our history, when the lands of the vikings were Christianised. The notion of a soul or God, as well as the incorporation of crosses became more common among runestones. The Christian generations ahead would later tear down runestones as it was considered heresy - but any stone that had a cross on it was left standing. Although a thousand years have passed, the vikings remain an important part of our past and our heritage. While the large mounds of ancient viking kings will be the big go-to tourist destination, there's something very humble and human about a short message left to commemorate the final goodbye to a daughter.