Gamla Stan, Stockholm

The medieval city centre of Stockholm, Gamla Stan, with its little hidden corners and narrow alleys has many secrets. Because there are too many to list, we will explain one of the most interesting hidden secrets. 
In the photo below we see a runestone; or at least part of it. Next to the stone there’s what appears to be a post, but is actually a 17th century cannon. Coincidentally, this is also when the first mention of the runestone was made. How the stone got there is unknown. It is not uncommon at all for runestones to be used in walls; many churches in Scandinavia also feature parts of runestones in their walls. This does however not necessarily indicate there is a deeper meaning other than just using the stone for structural purposes.
The stone features the so called “Urnes style” animal motifs and dates back to the 11th century. The inscription reads “Torsten and Frögunn had the stone erected after their son (name missing)…”. It is very likely the stone originated from the direct area of Stockholm before it ended up at its current place. Records tell of two other runic inscriptions in Gamla Stan. One is now located in the Medieval museum, the other one is sadly lost.
The stone pictured is located at the crossing of Prästgatan / Kåkbrinken.