The mystery of Lindö-Gullbron's runestone

In the district of Vallenta, not far from the town of Vallentuna, stands a granite stone that once played a significant role. Known as Upplands Runic Inscription 236, this runestone was one of the stone markers for Gullbron, a famed bridge North of Vallentunasjön. The bridge, often celebrated for its grandeur, was located near 'häradtz Rätte platz', the judicial assembly place for the härad. Through older maps and antiquarian records from the 17th century, we have gained a good understanding of how the bridge appeared; its length was 165 'man steps' and both sides were bordered with runestones.

Of these four runestones, only three remain today, and all are carved by the same master stonemason known as Visäte. Apart from U 236, U 237 and U 238 also marked Gullbron near Lindönäs, a few kilometers west of Vallentuna along the main road to Upplands Väsby. The stone that was a part of the bridge has been made of light grey granite and the ornamentation follows the Urnes style: Pr3. Above the stylized head of the serpent, the tail forms a knot and continues to form the symbol of a cross. The translation of the inscription on U 236, according to the modern Swedish version, is as follows:

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons