and mental binds Hilda Ellis Davidson theorizes a connection between the valknut, the god Odin, and "mental binds": For instance, beside the figure of Odin on his horse shown on several memorial stones there is a kind of knot depicted, called the valknut, related to the triskele. This is thought to symbolize the power of the god to bind and unbind, mentioned in the poems and elsewhere. Odin had the power to lay bonds upon the mind, so that men became helpless in battle, and he could also loosen the tensions of fear and strain by his gifts of battle-madness, intoxication, and inspiration. Davidson says that similar symbols are found beside figures of wolves and ravens on "certain cremation urns" from Anglo-Saxon cemeteries in East Anglia. Other Because the symbol appears on picture stones with Odin and on burial gifts in the Oseberg ship burial, Rudolf Simek says that the symbol may have been associated with religious practices surrounding death. Topology The valknut is topologically equivalent to either the Borromean rings, the trefoil knot, or (in modern use only) a closed three-link chain, depending on the particular artistic depiction: Modern popular culture The symbol is used for a variety of purposes in modern popular culture. The valknut symbol is used as a religious symbol by adherents of Heathenry, a new religious movement inspired by historic Germanic paganism. In Europe, the Swedish forest products company Svenska Cellulosa Aktiebolaget uses a triquetra valknut as their logo, which can be commonly seen on many products produced by the company; the DFB has used a logo inspired by the unicursal form of the valknut for the Germany national football team since 1991. The symbol appears as the fretboard inlay on some of Arch Enemy/Carcass guitarist Michael Amott's signature Dean Guitars "Tyrant" models, and it is also used as a logo by American engineering firm RedViking. In Civilization VI, the valknut is the national symbol of Norway, which in the game is led by Harald Hardrada and mostly representative of Vikings rather than the modern country. The valknut has seen some use by White supremacists. The Anti-Defamation League notes that "nonracist pagans may also use this symbol, so one should carefully examine it in context rather than assume that a particular use of the symbol is racist." See also Mjölnir, a symbol representing the hammer of the god Thor, particularly popular during the Viking Age