06/05/2024
This ring was found on a woman who was buried approximately 1,200 years ago in Birka, an ancient Viking city located 30 km (19 miles) west of contemporary Stockholm, Sweden.
What makes this ring special is that it was inscribed with the words "for Allah" in Kufic Arabic, which was widely used between the 8th and 10th centuries. The ring provides evidence of the direct contact between Vikings and the Abbasid Caliphate, the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad.