SAGA-BOOK - Viking Society Web Publications

16 Saga-Book of the Viking Society
the two late inscriptions of twelfth-century date, Maughold
144 (144) and 145 (lIS) - carved by the same man,
[oa» Prestr, "John the priest".
The inscriptions of the Manx corpus are themselves not
without interest. They tell us something, if only a little,
of the artists, of the indigenous population, and of the
relations between the Celts and invading Vikings, as well
as a little of the life and customs of the people.
In Scandinavia it became fairly common practice in the
eleventh century to include the name of the sculptor and
of the rune-master on stone monuments. 45 This practice
is also found in the Isle of Man. I have discussed at some
length the important monuments of Gaut and noted that
the crosses at Braddan 135 (108) and 136 (109) and
Marown 139 (III) may have been carved by Thorbjorn.
I t is possible, on orthographical grounds." that Thorbjorn
also carved the runes on Kirk Michael 132 (105); indeed,
the Mammen-style animals at the base of the cross on
face A would suggest that he also carved the ornament.
The man who carved the runes did not, however, always
carve the ornament. This is patent in Scandinavias? and
is fairly clear in the Isle of Man. On Maughold 142 we
have encountered the phrase Arni risti runar pessar,
"Ami carved these runes", and other stones, mostly later
in date than the main series of decorated crosses, bear
similar phrases - Onchan 141 (II3), Maughold 145 (lIS),
Maughold 144 (114), for example. Although there is a
similarity of orthography between Thorbjorn's slabs,
there is no such similarity between the slabs carved by
Gaut. 48 It is possible, if we follow Shetelig, to identify
one of Gaut's rune-writers - Osruth - at St John's,
German 107 (81), but the association of this fragment
with Gaut is by no means certain. It is clear, however,
that Gaut, like certain Scandinavian sculptors, did not
•• Cf, Sven B. F. Jansson, The Runes of Sweden (I962), I36 if .
•• Olsen, op. cii., 22I.
(7 Cf. Jansson, loco cit.
•• Olsen, op. cit., 22I-3.