Oseberg Ship Museum
Many people ask, "What is the Oseberg Ship?" Obviously, they want to know more about this incredible Viking vessel. To accommodate this desire, I have put together this list of top 10 facts about the Oseberg Ship.
1. In 1904, archaeologist Professor Gustafson started digging at a farm in Norway. In only less than 3 months, he and his helpers excavated a mound, discovering one of the world's most important Viking era finds in history.
2. The vessel, measuring 17.8 feet long and 16.7 feet wide, is not only the oldest Viking longship but the best-preserved one to have been found.
3. Because the total weight of earth and rocks combined crushed the ship's structure, it took 21 painstaking long years for specialists to piece the entire burial vessel together as it once was.
4. It was re-constructed using 90% of its original timber. As a Karve, a small kind of Viking longship, it's built nearly mostly of oak and can be rowed and sailed. With fifteen pairs of oar holes, 30 men can row it, going no faster than about 10 knots, or 11.5 mph.
5. The ship's prow and stern are lavishly adorned with human and animal depictions, plus the bowhead is etched to appear like a spiraling snakehead.
6. The vessel's incredible decoration offers clues at the lofty status of everyone buried inside its wooden frame, for such an exquisite ship can just be used for Vikings possessing wealth and status.
7. Scientific investigations now reveal that one female passed away in the 70 to 80 age range, and a second died about 50 to 55.
8. One or the two ladies formed part of Viking aristocracy, playing significant religious or political roles in their community.
9. Several items were also found in the burial such as a gorgeously designed cart, 3 adorned sleighs, beds, a variety of lavish textiles, 5 well-carved animal heads, farming tools, and combs.
10. Many bones were discovered belonging to 6 dogs, 2 oxen, and 15 horses, probably representing sacrificial beasts sent to accompany the women on their journey to the afterlife.
Today, you can visit the Oseberg Museum to get a far better first-hand experience of the long-survived Viking ship.
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