The RUNES

A brief history:

    The runes are a very ancient alphabetic script whose letters(glyphs) were used in divination.  People who have read Tolkein ,or are of Scandinavian descent probably are aware of the viking runes. This fact led me to believe that there may be a void left open to people who don't fall into that category. Historians generally agree that the earliest use of these symbols or pictures date back to 1300 b.c. These symbols were etched on standing rocks or boulders by germanic and northern italic tribes ranging from Greenland,Sweden,British Isles even to Greece. Lately a rock has been discovered here in North America. The latest use of the runes was found in Greenland dating to the middle ages.

Their function in tribal culture:

    In almost all of these ancient tribes there was at least one person of special rank who possessed the knowledge of interpeting these symbols. Sometimes refered to as shamans. Most were men but even women were known to possess these powers. When matters relating to tribal decisions were to be made they usually consulted these runes in order to obtain an answer to an unknown situation. Sometimes used also to gain special powers against their adversaries of which they had many in those days. Often times the runes were consulted in family matters. Most of these knowledgable people passed these powers onto relatives or tribal leaders upon or shortly before dying. The tribal runecaster usually carried these runes in a form of pouch, hung on belts or even sewn on brightly coloured clothing. The runecaster was a powerful person well thought of and highly prized in a tribal community.