From: radzy@ICSI.Berkeley.EDU (T. O. Radzykewycz)
Subject: Re: info wanted on runes
Organization: International Computer Science Institute, Berkeley, CA, U.S.A.
Date: Thu, 20 Aug 1992 07:23:24 GMT

cortese@skid.ps.uci.edu (Janis Maria Cortese) writes:
> I would like to make rune jewelry.  The problem?  I only know what
> about six runes look like,

There are only a few of them, between about 18 and about 30
depending on which runic system you use, if memory serves me
correctly (which it usually doesn't).  I'd look it up, but I
can't find my books on runes right now.  Sigh.

There are zillions of books on using runes for magic -- most of
them are trash (there are a few exceptions).  I've found one
really good academic introduction to runes, by R. I. Page (or is
that Paige?).  It has sections on using the runes for magic, but
it discusses a lot of interesting stuff about where and how they
were used, about variations, about how they might have been
developed, and other stuff.

The runic system I like best has 24 characters -- three groups
(aettir) of eight symbols each.  I believe it is the old
germanic system, before the teutonic tribes went their separate
ways and evolved into the different language groups.

Incidentally, the book by Page is used as one of the texts to a
course on writing systems here at Berkeley.  Isn't linguistics
wonderful!

As to how we can show you:

1.  Back when we first started reading alt.pagan (remember,
Janis, that you and I found it about the same time), there were
several postings of bitmaps of runes.  If you have a system that
can use them, I'll mail them to you (or if a lot of people ask
for them, I can post them -- I'm pretty sure I have all three
versions, and I'm *absolutely* sure I have the one I posted.)
These systems are things like SUNs and VAX workstations and
such.  If this means anything to you: they're workstations
running the X window system.

2.  If you have access to a PostScript printer, I have a program
which draws them.  You can modify it to actually write out the
words/letters you want to spell, rather than transcribing by
hand.  I'll be happy to send something like this to you.
Unfortunately, they aren't very professional looking -- I didn't
spend too much time working on them.

3.  I'll snail-mail you (Janis) a page with the germanic runes
on it, along with the reconstructed names of the runes, the
translation of the names (which gives what they stand for), and
their reconstructed phonetic values.  It may be a screen-dump of
one of the rune bitmaps I mentioned above, or a page from the
PostScript program.

> a catalogue (Pyramid Books and the New Age Collection; did you
> ever send for the star, radzy?)

No.  I still have the info you sent, but I haven't screwed up my
courage (or my checkbook) enough to pay that much for them.

Bear Blessings!

		-- radzy

------------------------------------------------------------
					|  An it harm none,
	T. O. Radzykewycz	     	|  do as ye will.
	The Incredible Radical Cabbage	|
					|  "Just pray for a
	radzy@cogsci.berkeley.edu       |  tough hide and a
	        			|  tender heart."
	        			|    -- Ruth Graham
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