Denmark (AP) — The skeletons of two related Viking-era men one who died in central Denmark and the other who was killed in England during a massacre ordered by a king are set to be reunited for an exhibition opening in Copenhagen this month Scientists on both sides of the North Sea have established a genetic link between the Norsemen DNA tests showed “that they are either half brothers or nephew and uncle,” University of Copenhagen geneticist Eske Willerslev said The man from the central Denmark island of Funen was a farmer in his 50s; his skeleton was excavated in 2005 near the town of Otterup He stood 182-centimeters-tall (just under 6 feet) had arthritis in most of his bones and signs of inflammation inside some ribs which could indicate tuberculosis according to Odense City Museums chief curator Jesper Hansen The man likely took part in the raids for which Vikings remain notorious because “he also has a violent lesion on his left pelvis which may have originated from a proper stab from a sword The wound from that blow may have cost him his life because it did not heal,” Hansen said in a statement the skeleton of a younger man was found in a mass grave near Oxford England in 2008 with the remains of at least 35 other men All were killed more than 1,000 years ago when the king ordered the slaying of dozens of Danish settlers “He died of massive injuries from several types of weapons,” Lasse Soerensen head of research at the National Museum of Denmark His skull shows traces of at least nine lesions caused by a sword or other sharp object and the skeleton also revealed signs he was speared several times in the back The pair of skeletons will be displayed as part of an exhibit titled “Togtet” – Danish for ”The Raid” – that opens June 26 at the National Museum of Denmark people from Denmark settled in England as farmers King Aethelred II ordered the Danes – adults and children – to be killed in 1002 Norsemen known as Vikings undertook large-scale raiding Stay secure and make sure you have the best reading experience possible by upgrading your browser A rifle with an interesting conglomeration of features including: a Brazilian crest on the DWM Model 98 Mauser receiver; a long “6,5x55” and “DDSG&I;” a beefy stock proportioned for prone shooting; front and rear aperture sights; a Schultz & Larsen sticker on the left side and a chart stuck on the bottom of the forearm Army’s Director of Civilian Marksmanship worked closely with NRA to train civilians in marksmanship against the times when competitors would need to bring those skills to active duty—as they did in two world wars and conflicts since then government ceased active support of civilian marksmanship training and competition in 1996 when the Clinton Administration and Congress terminated the DCM an office established by President Theodore Roosevelt in 1907 Its heart is a Model 1908 Mauser action that retains its Brazilian crest How it got from Brazil to Denmark is a story left to our imagination The heavy 28-inch (71cm) barrel is about one inch in diameter at the receiver tapering to about ¾ inch at the muzzle (19mm and 17.5mm Though several sources report a 1:9-inch twist repeated measurement reveals a 1:8¼-inch twist on this rifle suitable for a 140-grain (1.9 gram) bullet matte gray/black metal finish seems to be a phosphate There are no stamped metal parts.The barrel bears the stamps The “DDSG&I” stamp is a story of its own that explains why these club rifles are sometimes described as “Danish CMP” rifles “De Danske Skytte-Gymnastik & Idrætsforeninger,” which translates to Gymnastics and Sports Associations.” This organization has roots going back to the Sports Confederation of Denmark of 1896 which at that time represented nine different sports its purpose to set uniform rules for competitions and at least some of its income provided by government grants it’s absorbed into the National Olympic Committee and Sports Confederation of Denmark.StickersThe Schultz & Larsen sticker on the left side of the forearm is a bit of advertising that IDs the rifle’s maker; the sticker on the bottom of the forearm is a chart of rear sight come-ups assure us the information is what we’d surmise: a 200-meter zero with a specific bullet (“terræn patron” translates unhelpfully to “terrain cartridge”) at 2740 fps (835 m/sec) requires 39 clicks of come-up when moving back to 600 meters round stickers that appear to indicate individual DDSG&I sponsored matches Sights: Not Too MysteriousThe quality aperture sights have no marks identifying maker or model; they may be Schultz & Larsen originals the rifle came without any extra front sight inserts; Anschutz inserts fit but that doesn’t necessarily mean they are Anschutz sights Adjustments are very positive and repeatable as we’d expect on a match rifle from a land where the shooter may be wearing gloves and appear to move bullet impact just shy of ½ MOA That equates to roughly 10mm per click at 100 meters which is sensible on a European target rifle and fine enough for the club rifle’s purpose TriggerThe Schultz & Larsen trigger appears to be fully adjustable (see diagram) as received the trigger breaks at a very consistent 3¾ pounds; there’s no reason to fiddle with something that’s working fine which required seating bullets .207 inch deeper into the case and subsequently doubling group sizes That pretty much makes it a single-loading only proposition precluding its use as an across-the-course rifle—at least with bullets of such secant ogive dedicated load development with other bullets may change that.Just a little bit of experiment found that 42 grains of Hodgdon H4831SC lit with a Federal 210M primer will print Berger’s superb 140-grain VLD bullet into fairly round 1-inch groups at 100 yards Further experiment may reduce or round groups a bit more but 1 MOA from an old-school rifle isn’t too shabby and so far only outing at a 600-yard match turned in a 174-8X (with a single Technology has improved the precision of target rifles since the 1960s Ergonomics in particular have become much more individualized readily adjusting the rifle to fit the shooter Club rifles were a “one size fits all” approach with the underlying collateral intent that competition was to prepare the individual for possible future military defense of country rifles of basic military design were desirable anyway.In the hands of shooters of comparable skill level the 60-year-old club rifle isn’t likely to keep up with the 21st century tube gun On the one hand we might today consider one of these old-timers as a practical entry level competition rifle at a fraction of the cost of a new match gun But another hand holds that competition isn’t always about dollars and winning On this other hand there is an undefinable appreciation in slinging-in to leather wood and steel to shoot a genuine piece of Cold War history and satisfaction in puzzling out and adjusting to the mechanics of the way things used to be Team Remington’s Madison Sharpe and Todd Hitch claim Main Event High Over All titles at 2025 U.S Magpul allows customizable sight picture selection by adding a hooded front sight variant to its MBUS Pro sight A short history of Winter Olympic Biathlon competition from 1960 to 1976 Highlights from the May 2025 issue of Shooting Sports USA Here’s a look at each product in the new MDT Nanoguard lineup Mads Nielsen was 63 years old when he left Denmark in 1883 — never to return to join his eldest son in Utah who had immigrated to prepare the way for the family His love of the gospel was deep and his desire to unite with the saints was great he ate his simply prepared meals or relied on the goodness of neighbors these letters included the recollections of his last morning in Denmark how he was sticking thistles in the field outside his farm and left without seeing his wife Little did he know she was hiding in the pantry — weeping His wife probably would have joined the Church a Danish historian and archivist in Otterup who is not a member of the Church When he lost hope of ever seeing his family again the gripping and sometimes mournful life of Mads Nielsen was forgotten and largely unknown until several years ago when descendants in Denmark discovered his dusty old letters and delivered them to Margit in 1998 for safe keeping in the local archives Margit found the letters fascinating and felt compelled to learn more about Mads and his family She wanted to understand what force was so powerful as to uproot him and many other Danes from their homeland for the parched deserts of Utah From the letters and other genealogical information Margit pieced together the life of Mads Nielsen and compiled her information in a book titled: "Mads Nielsen David and Mette Marie In God's Own Land." She has now been commissioned by the Danish government to write another book this one detailing the lives of all the early members who joined the Church in Denmark on Funen and on the Funen islands Funen is the island near the base of the peninsula contiguous with Germany But Margit contends that every early member of the Church from Denmark has a fascinating story to tell She believes that Danish interest in the Church is mounting because of Sea Trek 2001 that this summer will re-create the sea voyage taken by early members of the Church from Europe and because of the 2002 Winter Olympics in Utah "The forgotten Mormon history must now be told," she said Margit is imploring members of the Church with Danish ancestry stemming from the Funen area to contact her with their family histories I have received money from the Minister of Culture to write this book I will tell the background of the Mormon immigrants The history of the Mormons in Funen is a very touching story," she said Margit spent a few weeks in Salt Lake City in the Family and Church History Department a year ago where she gathered the names and dates of early converts "Now I'm searching for the history and anecdotes that tell what happened in those early days Very often Mormons have written their ancestors' stories This is a treasure and it would be very valuable to the project to use these memories," she said Among the anecdotes Margit has collected is the life history of Jens Hansen a now "famous missionary" who was born in Otterup in 1823 being awarded the "Cross of Dannebrog" by the king for valor in the Schlesvian War in 1848-51 "He led a remarkable life," said Margit after writing a chapter on Jens' life "He held meetings in his father's home and seemed to have more energy than anyone else He baptized 50 people and is responsible for establishing the branches on North Funen." One area rich in early Church history is Bredstrup Mill in northern Funen center of the Bredstrup Branch that existed between 1855-1863 There were 120 members in the branch at the time the story of the saints there is totally unknown to the Danes Among those early members was Bodil Clausdatter who married the son of the miller She learned of the Church from discussions in the mill "she and her husband got a big farm nearby," said Margit leaving Bodil to seek support from her mother But her mother was unfamiliar with the Church and turned her back on Bodil and her children walked on the opposite side of the street from Bodil." Bodil packed bags for herself and the children and immigrated to Utah one of Bodil's fond memories was the sweet smell of jasmine flowers that grew abundantly around the farm some of Bodil's descendants returned to Bredstrup Mill in search of the farm and the fragrance of jasmine that they had heard so much about through family history Another area of particular interest is Strib Mark where the first converts in Funen joined the Church "What I want to write about," said Margit You get a hint of why they converted when you learn about the first converters "That's the material I'm looking for," Margit said Ancestors come to life when you tell such stories." Email: shaun@desnews.com Those interested in supplying anecdotal information about an ancestor's conversion on the island of Funen, Denmark, may contact Margit Egdal's assistant in Salt Lake City by email: kaarenlinton@uswest.net or by writing: Margit Egdal / Stenvej 70 / 5450 Otterup / Denmark