Overview

• Archaeologists led by Ryan Primrose have decoded 255 runes carved into bedrock, identifying the text as the Lord’s Prayer in Swedish.
• The characters belong to the Futhark system, reflecting Scandinavia’s runic script adapted for a 1611 Swedish prayer translation.
• Evidence points to Swedish laborers hired by the Hudson’s Bay Company during its 19th-century Canadian expansion as the carvers.
• The stone slab had been intentionally buried under soil and only resurfaced when a fallen tree exposed the runes in 2018.
• The find offers rare insight into the spiritual life and cultural heritage of remote Scandinavian fur-trade communities.