Janey Westin was the featured speaker in Kensington, MN on Saturday, April 20th. The Kensington Area Heritage Society sponsored a great day highlighting the Kensington Runestone with Janey providing her expertise on the topic. Paired with a vintage photography display in the original town hall and a luncheon, it was a full day. Colleagues Patricia Paolella and Lisa Larson attended in support (and learned a lot about runes!).
Our 5 Takeaways:
• Interest remains very high among local residents in the Kensington Runestone topic – a full crowd, lots of questions. (FYI - the stone itself is located in a museum in nearby Alexandria, MN, a modest yet very informative place if you are looking for a day trip).
• Janey brings a broader point of view to the basic runes and runic writing – giving more depth and context to the stone itself. As an actual carver, her information varies from the average scholar / researcher.
• She also provides an educational ‘bridge’ for this artifact through studies of medieval and northern European / Icelandic manuscripts.
• As time has passed, there has been a shift in popular focus towards more scientific
analysis of the stone versus the stories and ‘folklore’ that has dogged it for years.
• Also fascinating was what the stone has been through since it was discovered in 1898 – re-striking (an attempt to make it more readable), an accidental, darker 'staining' from a mold-creating process, etc. The various interpretations and written studies also offer thought-provoking theories (Janey co-authored a book on this topic, for those who do not know).
The presentation was a resounding success, new connections made – & time well spent with a fascinating piece of Minnesota history.
