Wolter - The hooked X: key to the secret history of North America

THE HOOKED X

Key to the Secret History of North America

Scott F. Wolter, P.G.

NORTH STAR PRESS OF ST. CLOUD, INC. St. Cloud, Minnesota

Dedication

To Darwin Ohman and Niven Sinclair
Two men who have defended their families
legacies with dignity, honor, and, above all else, the truth.

And to my Goddess, Janet

Foreword

History needs to be rewritten.

The North American Continent is awash with evidence of pre-Columbian visitors who left their imprint on the landscape and their writing on stones and boulders as markers for those who followed. Ogham and Runic inscriptions tell a story of Celtic and Viking penetration into the very hinterland of the New World.

These early seafarers must have felt very much at home as they found one watercourse leading into another with a never-ending string of lakes replete with fish and waterfowl to meet their inner needs. They had found a Paradisea garden of Eden.

Historians have been singularly slow in explaining the presence of runic inscriptions; they describe them as fakes which is a convenient excuse to hide their own ignorance. Fortunately, there are those who have been prepared to challenge such arbitrary findings so that we might have a better understanding of those who left their imprint on the land. One such man is Scott Wolter whose new book, The Hooked X: Key to the Secret History of North America, is a masterful combination of science and logic as well as being a gripping detective story that leaves no stone unturned (literally as well as figuratively).

Scotts book is guaranteed to make us take a fresh look at the rich evidence that lies beneath our feet and which, even when discovered, has been brutally pushed aside by the academic establishment for no better reason than to protect the status quo. We all owe him a debt of gratitude for the perseverance and determination he has shown in bringing an important part of Americas early history to light. In his book, he quotes an inscription found in the Sinclair family chapel at Rosslyn in Scotland. It ends with the words: The truth conquers all. There can be no better summary to describe Scotts richly revealing and rewarding manuscript. It deserves to be read.

NivenSinclair

Introduction

T his book is the culmination of a nine-year odyssey to understand the origin of a mysterious symbol that first appeared on a highly controversial century-old artifact called the Kensington Rune Stone. The discovery of the meaning of the Hooked X was stunning, as was the secret history behind it that gradually unfolded as I continued my quest to learn more about that history through research. This journey has been nothing short of amazing. To avoid confusion I should explain a couple of things. The first is that this book is in part a continuation of the narrative I wrote in the 2005 book, co-authored with Richard Nielsen, entitled, The Kensington Rune Stone: Compelling New Evidence . In addition to the presentation of factual evidence that was consistent with the Kensington Rune Stone having a medieval origin, I also wrote about the amazing experiences that happened from the day I was first hired to study the artifact in July of 2000.

As research continued, I wanted to write about the discoveries that came after the publication of the first book. Important aspects of the Kensington Rune Stone inscription presented in the first book, such as the dotted R, the Grail prayer, and certainly the Hooked X, along with the sacred geometry at the discovery site needed additional clarity. Never-before published discoveries provide additional support for the authenticity of the Kensington Rune Stone. This new evidence serves as the foundation upon which the case for the medieval origin of the Spirit Pond and Narragansett Rune Stones, as well as the Newport Tower in Rhode Island rests. Anything that helps validate the Kensington Rune Stone also validates the Hooked X, which also appears on the other four North American rune stones and ties them all together.

The Hooked X is also found in two other unexpected places: The Larsson Papers found in Sweden in 2004, and in Christopher Columbuss mysterious sigla. The evidence and analysis presented here suggests the origin of the symbol lies within the coded alphabet of secret societies that have been in existence since at least the early part of the twelfth century right through today.

My research traces the Hooked X along a path that begins in Minnesota and makes its first stop along the Atlantic Coast, where it is found on the three Spirit Pond Rune Stones discovered at Popham Beach, Maine, in 1971. All three runic inscriptions, believed by many scholars to be fakes, are carved with the Hooked X symbol being used for the letter a. The Spirit Pond Map Stone has inscribed on it the words, Vinland 1402, takes two days with an arrow pointing south.

This took me to my next stop on the Hooked X journey. If a ship sailed two days south of the area depicted on the Map Stone at Popham Beach, Maine, it would be in the vicinity of Cape Cod, Massachusetts, and Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island. Curiously, another runic inscription was found carved on a large boulder in shallow water near the shore in Narragansett Bay. It also contains the Hooked X. This suggests that those who carved all five North American rune stones are somehow connected, considering that the Hooked X is not found on any of the thousands of known runic inscriptions that occur throughout Scandinavia.

On the other side of Narragansett Bay, in Newport, Rhode Island, stands a mysterious two-story stone structure called the Newport Tower. To this day, scholars debate its origin. I present my evidence, consistent with a medieval origin for the tower and its likely connection to the same parties who carved the runic inscriptions with the mysterious Hooked X. Amazingly, the final stop on the Hooked X journey in North America was discovered from evidence constructed within the Newport Tower and brings the story full-circle back to Kensington, Minnesota.

Another important discovery came from the dates of 1401 to 1402 A . D . on the Spirit Pond Rune Stones. These dates provide an important clue to the historical figure most likely connected to these rune stones and who is possibly the person responsible for construction of the Newport Tower. Prince Henry Sinclair, the first Earl of Orkney, Scotland, reportedly sailed with several ships to the New World in 1398. There is no known tomb or gravestone for him in his homeland, and his fate after this voyage is unknown. Since most current historians avow that there are no other known candidates who can be connected to Spirit Pond at that time, he became the logical focus.

In the case of the rune stones, Dick Nielsens and my research on the Kensington Rune Stone indicates that the authors of these inscriptions were medieval Cistercian monks using the runic practice found on Gotland in the middle of the fourteenth century. Ive made a concerted effort to try to understand the mindset of the Cistercians, as well as the military Order of the Knights Templar they formally established in 1128, who shared the same religious beliefs. I believe the Hooked X is a symbolic representation of those beliefs. Understanding their beliefs was paramount to the discoveries Ive made, which included the realization that the continuation of that ideology thrives today.

Keep in mind the human toll the Kensington Rune Stone controversy had on the family of its discoverer, Olof Ohman. Not only did he endure decades of accusations, scorn, and ridicule, but his wife, Karin, and their nine children suffered as well. Two of their children committed suicide David in 1929, and their oldest daughter, Amanda, in 1951, who took her own life, it appears, at least in part because of harassment by sometimes fanatical opponents. The grandchildren and great-grandchildren of Karin and Olof were shielded by the parents, aunts, and uncles, yet are still well aware of the hardships their family endured. The factual evidence we presented in our first book fully exonerated Olof, but whenever something new surfaces that further solidifies the case, I want to ensure it is published. This includes a previously unknown letter written by Olof Ohman that came to light after I gave a presentation to a Sons of Norway group in September of 2006. Olof wrote candidly in this letter about his most direct statement concerning his involvement in the controversy.