Archaeologists have finally deciphered a mysterious rock with Biblical markings years after it was uncovered, but what they’ve discovered may just lead to more questions. The rock was discovered in 2018 in Wawa, Ontario after a tree fell over. It bore 255 strange characters which appeared to be some 200 years old. The rock also bore a carved picture of a boat bearing sixteen people aboard and 14 X’s. Images of the rock made their way to archaeologist Ryan Primrose, the director of the Ontario Centre for Archaeological Education in New Liskeard, who continued to study the figures for the next five years. “Well, it’s certainly among the least expected finds that I think I’ve encountered during my career. It’s absolutely fascinating,” Primrose said of the ciphers.

Primrose recognized the characters as Nordic runes and enlisted the help of Henrik Williams, an emeritus professor at Uppsala University in Sweden and a leading expert in runology. After spending some hours in freezing weather with a flashlight, Williams recognized the ciphers as a 1611 Swedish version of the Lord’s Prayer that had been republished in the 19^th century, at the time the rock was believed to be carved into. Williams said the carving required quite a commitment. “It must have taken days and days of work. They are really deeply carved into the rock. Someone must have spent a couple of weeks carving this thing,” he said.

The rock doesn’t offer up too many answers about why there is a 200-year-old Swedish text under a tree in Ontario, but Williams has one working theory. According to his research, the Hudson’s Bay Company hired Swedes in the 1800s to work at trading posts in the Canadian wilderness. The Michipicoten post is not too far from where the carving was found, so Williams believes the rock may have marked a site for a place of worship for either a group of Swedish workers at the trading post, or a single worker. The rock was found buried under only a few inches of dirt, indicating it might have been purposefully buried. The lack of any other artifacts with the rock makes gathering more information difficult. “Anybody has to start wondering ‘Why on Earth did they carve it here and why did they choose that text?’ And there’s no answers,” said Williams. “But mysteries, they do tend to attract people and this one will certainly do that.”