Viking Ships, Oseberg And Gokstad Ships

The Oseberg and the Gokstad are the most famous Viking ships in the world. The Viking Ship Museum is located in Oslo, Norway. Bygdøy is a peninsula on the western side of Oslo. Bygdøy has several museums.

Another Viking Ship Museum can be found in Roskilde, Denmark.

The main attractions at the Viking Ship Museum at Oslo are the Oseberg ship, Gokstad ship, and the Tune ship.

The most famous find is the Oseberg ship. It was discovered in a large burial mound at the Oseberg farm near Tønsberg in Vestfold county, Norway.

The ship’s interment into its burial mound dates from 834 AD, but parts of the ship date from around 800 AD, and the ship itself is thought to be older. It was excavated by Norwegian archaeologist Haakon Shetelig and Swedish archaeologist Gabriel Gustafson in 1904-1905. This ship is widely celebrated and has been called one of the finest finds to have survived the Viking Age.

The Oseberg burial mound contained numerous grave goods and two female human skeletons.

The Gokstad was found in a burial mound at Gokstad farm in Sandar, Sandefjord, Vestfold, Norway. During the excavations, the skeleton of a male aged between 50 to 70 years was recovered.

The Gokstad was not intended for long voyages but for warfare, trade, transportation of people and cargo. The ship is 23.24 metres (76.2 ft) long and 5.20 m (17.1 ft) wide. It is the largest in the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo. The Gokstad is clinker-built, constructed largely of oak.

The Tune ship was built around 900 AD and was made of clinkered oak planks.

The Viking Ships  (Part 2)
The Viking Ships  (Part 3)
The Viking Ships  (Part 4)