Pushing back the Horizon (16): The route of St Olav Ways: the pilgrimages of Northern Europe
In 1031 Olav II of Norway was blessed and buried at Trondheim. The Ways of St Olav, one of the most important historical pilgrimages in the Scandinavian countries , are now being rediscovered, following the example of the Ways to Santiago de Compostela. A unifying saga The life of Olav Haraldsson – St Olav – was described in a saga titled “ Heimskringla ” (‘the circle of the world’), which recounted the lives of the kings of Norway. It was originally written in Old Norwegian in the twelfth century by the poet Snorri Sturluson and was later translated into the different Scandinavian languages, as well as into Latin, but it was only in the nineteenth century, from the revival of Norwegian nationalism to independence in 1905, that it took on greater importance. “Twelve months and five days after the death of King Olav, his holy remains were disinterred and the coffin appeared almost new, as if it had been made recently …” This text, parallels of which can be found in other accounts of sai...
