# Broby bro Runestones

59°29′N 18°02′E﻿ / ﻿59.483°N 18.033°E﻿ / 59.483; 18.033
At Broby bro in Uppland, Sweden there are six runestones. U 139, U 140 and U 151 still stand by the road, but U 135, U 136 and U 137 have been moved a distance away from the road.
The last three stones are in the style Pr2 and thus dated to the period 1020–1050, but the internal relationship between them shows that U 137 is the oldest one. They belong to a group of c. 20 runestones called the Jarlabanke Runestones that are connected to the local strongman Jarlabanke and his clan. Together with the Hargs bro runic inscriptions and the Uppland Rune Inscriptions 101, 143 and 147 these particular runestones, however, centre on the matriarch of the clan called Estrid.
U 137 tells that Estrid and Östen have a son named Gag who dies, and when it was raised Östen was still alive. The other stones (U 135 and U 136) constitute a twin monument telling that Östen has gone to Jerusalem and died in the Byzantine Empire.
Estrid and Östen had three sons: Ingefast, Östen and Sven, who built a bridge and a barrow after their father. These twin stones show that Gag died as relatively young as he is not mentioned on them.
Estrid is the same person as the Estrid who is mentioned on a number of runestones in Täby and other locations (Hargs bro runic inscriptions and Uppland Rune Inscriptions 101, 143 and 147). This Estrid was the maternal ancestor of a great clan called the Jarlabanke clan, and she was the maternal grandmother of the powerful Jarlabanke who claimed to own all of Täby.
The carver of the Snottsta runestone called U 329, where an Estrid and her brother Ragnfast are mentioned, was Fot who also made the runestones for the Jarlabanke clan. This strongly suggests that Estrid was born in Snottsta (also spelled Snåttsta), married Östen of Täby and married for the second time in Harg near Snottsta.

## U 135

The first line is Latin transliteration, the second Old Norse transcription:
ikifastr
Ingifastr
auk
ok
austain
Øystæinn
auk
ok
suain
Svæinn
litu
letu
raisa
ræisa
staina
stæina
þasa
þessa
at
at
austain
Øystæin,
faþur
faður
sin
sinn,
auk
ok
bru
bro
þasa
þessa
karþu
gærðu
auk
ok
hauk
haug
þana
þenna.
× ikifastr × auk × austain × auk × suain × litu * raisa + staina þasa * at * austain faþur × sin × auk × bru × þasa karþu × auk × hauk þana ×
 Ingifastr ok Øystæinn ok Svæinn letu ræisa stæina þessa at Øystæin, faður sinn, ok bro þessa gærðu ok haug þenna.
Ingifastr and Eysteinn and Sveinn had these stones raised in memory of Eysteinn, their father, and made this bridge and this mound.

## U 136

The first line is Latin transliteration, the second Old Norse transcription:
astriþr
Æstriðr
la(t)
let
raisa
ræisa
staina
stæina
þasa
þessa
[a]t
at
austain
Øystæin,
buta
bonda
sin
sinn,
is
es
suti
sotti
iursalir
Iorsaliʀ
auk
ok
antaþis
ændaðis
ub
upp
i
i
kirkum
Grikkium.
× astriþr × la(t) + raisa × staina × þasa × [a]t austain × buta sin × is × suti × iursalir auk antaþis ub i × kirkum
 Æstriðr let ræisa stæina þessa at Øystæin, bonda sinn, es sotti Iorsaliʀ ok ændaðis upp i Grikkium.
Ástríðr had these stones raised in memory of Eysteinn, her husbandman, who went to Jerusalem and met his end up in Greece.

## U 137

The first line is Latin transliteration, the second Old Norse transcription:
aystin
Øystæinn
auk
ok
astriþr
Æstriðr
raistu
ræistu
stina
stæina
aftir
æftiʀ
kak
Kag(?)/Gag(?),
sun
sun
sin
sinn.
* aystin * auk * astriþr * raistu * stina * aftir * kak * sun * sin *
 Øystæinn ok Æstriðr ræistu stæina æftiʀ Kag(?)/Gag(?), sun sinn.
Eysteinn and Ástríðr raised the stones in memory of Kagr(?)/Gagr(?), their son.

## U 139

The first line is Latin transliteration, the second Old Norse transcription:
...sti
[ri]sti
ru...
ru[naʀ]
hia(l)...
hial[pi]
hans
hans
... ...sti ' ru... {... *} hia(l)... ... hans
... [ri]sti ru[naʀ] ... hial[pi] ... hans
... carved the runes ... may help ... his

## U 151

The first line is Latin transliteration, the second Old Norse transcription:
þurbiarn
Þorbiorn
uk
ok
ikiþura
Ingiþora
litu
letu
raisa
ræisa
ist[ai]n
stæin
þina
þenna
iftiʀ
æftiʀ
ikul
Igul,
faþur
faður
sin
sinn,
uk
ok
irinui
Ærinvi
iftiʀ
æftiʀ
buanta
boanda
sin
sinn
uk
ok
afti(ʀ)
æftiʀ
× þurbiarn × uk × ikiþura × litu × raisa × ist[ai]n × þina × iftiʀ × ikul × faþur sin × uk × irinui × iftiʀ × buanta sin × uk afti(ʀ) ---
 Þorbiorn ok Ingiþora letu ræisa stæin þenna æftiʀ Igul, faður sinn, ok Ærinvi æftiʀ boanda sinn ok æftiʀ ...
Þorbjôrn and Ingiþóra had this stone raised in memory of Ígull, their father; and Erinvé in memory of her husbandman and in memory of ...