The Skuldelev ships is a term used for 5
Viking shipViking ship is a collective term for ships used during the Viking Age in Northern Europe. They often had a dragon head or other circular object protruding from the front and back, for design....
s recovered from Peberrenden by Skuldelev, c. 20 km north of
RoskildeRoskilde is the main city in Roskilde Municipality, Denmark on the island of Zealand. It is an ancient city, dating from the Viking Age.Roskilde train station is a major stop between Copenhagen and the region of Denmark located to its west...
in
DenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe and the senior member of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries; southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and it is bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark borders both the Baltic and the North Sea...
. The remains of the ships were excavated over 4 months in 1962. The recovered pieces, which constitute 5 types of ships and have been dated to the 11th century, provide a good source for the shipbuilding traditions of the late Viking period. The ships are today exhibited at the
Viking Ship Museum in RoskildeThe Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde is the Danish national museum for ships, seafaring and boatbuilding in the prehistoric and medieval period....
.
Skuldelev 1 is a sturdy sea-going cargo-vessel possibly of the
knarrThe modern Knarr is a Bermuda rigged, long keeled, sailing yacht. The Knarr was designed by Erling L. Kristofersen, Norway, in 1943. It was traditionally built in wood, with the hull upside down on a fixed frame or plug and attaching the iron keel after having finished the hull. The hull planks...
type.
The Skuldelev ships is a term used for 5
Viking shipViking ship is a collective term for ships used during the Viking Age in Northern Europe. They often had a dragon head or other circular object protruding from the front and back, for design....
s recovered from Peberrenden by Skuldelev, c. 20 km north of
RoskildeRoskilde is the main city in Roskilde Municipality, Denmark on the island of Zealand. It is an ancient city, dating from the Viking Age.Roskilde train station is a major stop between Copenhagen and the region of Denmark located to its west...
in
DenmarkDenmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe and the senior member of the Kingdom of Denmark. It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries; southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and it is bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark borders both the Baltic and the North Sea...
. The remains of the ships were excavated over 4 months in 1962. The recovered pieces, which constitute 5 types of ships and have been dated to the 11th century, provide a good source for the shipbuilding traditions of the late Viking period. The ships are today exhibited at the
Viking Ship Museum in RoskildeThe Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde is the Danish national museum for ships, seafaring and boatbuilding in the prehistoric and medieval period....
.
Skuldelev 1
Skuldelev 1 is a sturdy sea-going cargo-vessel possibly of the
knarrThe modern Knarr is a Bermuda rigged, long keeled, sailing yacht. The Knarr was designed by Erling L. Kristofersen, Norway, in 1943. It was traditionally built in wood, with the hull upside down on a fixed frame or plug and attaching the iron keel after having finished the hull. The hull planks...
type. It is 16 m long and 4.8 m wide and would have had a crew of 6-8. The ship, which is built from
pinePines are coniferous trees in the genus Pinus , in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Distribution:...
and
oakAn oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 400 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
, was constructed in western Sweden, and has seen repairs in eastern Denmark.
Skuldelev 2
Skuldelev 2 is an oak-built, sea-going warship, a
longshipLong-ships were ships made and used by the Vikings to raid coastal and inland settlements during the Viking Age. The vessels were also used for long distance trade and commerce, and for exploratory voyages to Iceland, Greenland, throughout the mediterranean etc. Longship design evolved over several...
, possibly of the skeid type. It is approximately 30 m long and 3.8 m wide, and would have had a crew of 70-80.
DendrochronologyDendrochronology or tree-ring dating is the scientific method of dating based on the analysis of patterns of tree-rings. Dendrochronology can date the time at which tree rings were formed, in many types of wood, to the exact calendar year...
showed that the ship was built in the
DublinDublin is the largest city and capital of Ireland. It is officially known in Irish as Baile Átha Cliath or Áth Cliath ; the English name comes from the Irish Dubh Linn meaning "black pool". It is located near the midpoint of Ireland's east coast, at the mouth of the River Liffey and at the...
area around 1042. The shape of the ship would have allowed for great speed, up to with a rowing crew of 60 and higher under sail. It is one of the longest Viking-ship ever found.
A reconstruction of this ship: The Sea Stallion from Glendalough (in Danish: Havhingsten) has been built by the
Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde and sailed to Dublin during the summer of 2007 (arriving on 14 August). The ship was on exhibit in Dublin until the summer of 2008 at which time it was sailed back to Roskilde (arrived on August 9th).
Skuldelev 3
The Skuldelev 3 is a 14 m long and 3.3 m wide cargo ship, possibly of the byrding type. It is made from oak, and was constructed somewhere in Denmark. It would have been well-suited to shorter journeys in Danish waters and the
Baltic SeaThe Baltic Sea is a brackish inland sea located in Northern Europe, from 53°N to 66°N latitude and from 20°E to 26°E longitude. It is bounded by the Scandinavian Peninsula, the mainland of Europe, and the Danish islands. It drains into the Kattegat by way of the Øresund, the Great Belt and the...
, it would have held a crew of 5-6 and could reach a top-speed of under sail.
Skuldelev 5
Skuldelev 5 is a small warship of the snekke type. It is 17.3 m long and 2.5 m wide and would have had a crew of about 30. It is made from oak, pine and
ashFraxinus , common name Ash, is a genus of usually medium to large trees, mostly deciduous though a few subtropical species are evergreen. Genus Fraxinus are the true ashes, and are in Oleaceae, the olive family, along with olives and lilacs. The leaves are opposite , and mostly pinnately-compound,...
, and was built in the Roskilde area. The ship was purpose-built for sailing in Danish waters and the Baltic Sea, and the top speed was calculated to have been about .
However, the first-ever replica of this ship (
Sebbe AlsSebbe Als is a replica of a Viking ship, Skuldelev wreck no. 5. She is the oldest sailing 'fiver' in Denmark.-Construction:A sailing trip with the Imme Gram and the then newly found Skuldelev wrecks became the inspiration for the creation of Sebbe Als.She was built by a group of local volunteers, a...
of
AugustenborgAugustenborg is a town on Als Island in Sønderborg Municipality, Region Syddanmark in Denmark. The town lies at the head of Als Fjord. To the east is the Little Belt...
, Denmark) showed these calculations to be wrong. 'Sebbe' is able to reach a speed of on oars alone, and under sail she does .
Skuldelev 6
Skuldelev 6 is a 11.2 m long and 2.5 m wide cargo and fishing-vessel of the ferja type. It was built in Sognefjorden in western
NorwayNorway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a country in Northern Europe occupying the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, as well as Jan Mayen and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard under the Spitsbergen Treaty...
, mainly from
pinePines are coniferous trees in the genus Pinus , in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Distribution:...
. It would have had a crew of 12-14.
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