The First Mention of Odin

This gold disc – the term of art is "bracteate," but that just means a gold disc that isn't a coin – was excavated in Denmark in 2020 and dated to the early 400s AD. It was made in a mold and two others of the type are known, one found back in 1870. But the others were too worn for the runic inscription to be read. Because of the swastika, associated with Odin in the Viking period, people had long wondered if this depicted Odin. (Announcement in Danish, English summary)

But the inscription on the new find is legible and has now been partially translated. It seems to refer to the pictured person as Jaga or Jagaz, "Odin's man." So this is not Odin himself but a great lord who was one of Odin's followers. This is the oldest known mention of Odin.

And it fits perfectly with our understanding of how and when Viking culture arose. As I have written here before, archaeological evidence points to the late Roman period, c. 250 to 450 AD, as the time when the Norse first had great lords living in longhouses, surrounded by their warriors. Since the worship of Odin was central to both kingship and warrior culture in later times, one would assume that Odin was central to those things during the period when they arose. As this find confirms.