Once upon a time this lion stood in Piraeus ; the seaport of Athens. Vikings came there and made tattoos on its shoulders - the kind of graffiti that Scandinavians sometimes do when they are abroad.

The lion was brought to Venice as a war trophy in 1687, and it was shot at during one of the World Wars (don't remember which one). The inscription is very much damaged, and can hardly be read. Point at the picture for different views.

Here you can see runes starting on its left leg, going up above the shoulder and down on the side of its body.

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