I absolutely love when I come across somebody's humor unexpectedly. Maybe it's in something they say that is otherwise serious. Maybe it's something they say in an email.
Maybe it's out in the middle of a field.
What?
Yup, I stumbled across somebody's humorous installation in the middle of a seldom-seen field in a northern part of Öland, a long, skinny island off the eastern coast of Sweden. I was on vacation and out for a walk with a group of adults and kids.
There, on the side of this seldom-used dirt road, was a viking boat grave.
This isn't it. But here's what they generally look like so you have some sort of reference:
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| Here's what another boat grave looks like, also on Öland. Photo: C. Michael Hogan |
The one we found was also a bunch of large stones in the rough shape of a viking boat.
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| The stones were set down in the field in the shape of a boat hull. |
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| ...But wait, there was a sign explaining things... |
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| ...So we stepped forward to read the sign,,, |
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| ...See below for the translation... |
Translation (trying to be "Old Swedish"...doesn't really translate?):
This type of boat grave (?) of the type, spurius, positioned facing south, derived probably from the early 2000's
constructed in the days of Ch. Sachs and T. Birath
These Swedes. A veritable laugh riot.
