Canterbury charm



The Canterbury charm is an Old Norse runic charm discovered inserted in the margin of an Anglo-Saxon manuscript from the year 1073.

Inscription
The runes are clear, and the transliteration of the runes is straight-forward (spaces between words not present in the original):

Similarly, the charm is translated by Macleod and Mees (2006) as:
 * Gyril wound-causer, go now! You are found. May Thor bless you, lord of ogres! Gyril wound-causer. Against blood-vessel pus!

Interpretation
The charm is intended for use against a specific ailment, described as "blood-vessel pus." MacLeod and Mees note that while Thor is not revered in surviving sources for his medical abilities, he was well attested as harboring enmity towards giants and as a protector of mankind. MacLeod and Mees compare the charm to the 11th-century Kvinneby amulet (where Thor is also called upon to provide protection), the formula structure of the Sigtuna amulet I, and the inscription on a then-recently discovered rib bone also from Sigtuna, Sweden.