The Ölsta stone.

Photo of stone:	Original binrn · au?ulfr · kunor · hulmtis · - - - u r - o stin ?ino · iftiR · ulf · kinlauhaR buanta · in osmuntr hiu
	Transcribed Biorn, Au?ulfR, Gunnarr, Holmdis [let]u re[tt]a stæin ?enna æftiR Ulf, GinnlaugaR boanda. En Asmundur hio.
	Swedish Björn, Ödulv, Gunnar, Holmdis läto uppresa denna sten efter Ulv, Ginnlögs man. Och Åsmund högg.
	English Björn, Ödulv, Gunnar, Holmdis let raise this stone after Ulv, Ginnlög's husband. And Åsmund cut.
Drawing of stone:

U871 was until 1896 standing at the probable original place close by the road between the villages Ölsta and Säva. The road, between Hagunda is part of the old "eriksgata" (the route all newly elected kings traveled through). Along it there are many rune stones. In 1896 this stone was sold for (according to tradition) SEK 50:- to Artur Hazelius, the founder of Skansen (an outdoors cultural museum), and is now placed by the Älvros farm. The damage to the left part was there already in the 17:th century, according to the notes ov Buréus. The stone is raised by 4 siblings, 3 brothers and one sister, to the memory of their father Ulv, the husband of Ginnlög. The maker is Åsmund Kåreson. You can see that by looking at the ornaments, the use and shape of the runes, the use of punctuation marks, the technique used to carve and the shapeof the lines.

Runverket (the department of runes) painted the stone in 1991 as an experiment and as protection against airborne contamination and lichen. The goal was to investigate how the coating works and how long the paint lasts. It is believed that it will last for 30-50 years. The possibility exists that it now will be impossible to use new technologies in the future to determine exactly how the stone was decorated. But on the other hand there are 3000 rune stones in Sweden, of which 1500 are to be found in the county Uppland.

Ref: Upplands runinskrifter III:3, Wessén, Elias och Jansson, Sven B. F. Uppsala 1951 DN På Stan 15/6 1991

frazze@ludd.luth.se