Journal of Coastal Research 1282-1289 Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fall 1997

The Viking Ship Per Bruun

Port and Coastal Engineering 34 Baynard Cove Road Hilton Head, SC 29928, USA

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BRUUN, PER. 1997. The Viking ship. Journal ofCoastal Research, 13(4),1282-1289. Fort Lauderdale (Florida), ISSN .tllllllll,. 0749-0208. ~ ~. This paper gives essential information on the design and operation of Viking ships. The information was gathered ~ ~"# from various sources including a book by Else Rosendal Vikingernes Verden (The World of the Vikings), The Ship -+; 1&r-&t Shape, Essays for Ole Crumlin Pedersen, the Viking Ship Museum, Roskilde, (1995), and from various newsletters from the Marine Archaeology Center in Roskilde, Denmark.

INTRODUCTION features adjusted to the natural forces, which they were ex­ posed to. Sails were not used in the early type Viking ships, The Viking ship is the symbol of the . It was a but were developed for long voyages. They became an inte­ trade and a war vessel, built of native materials, which were grated part of the Viking vessel a couple of hundred years often re-used when materials from old vessels were put in before the major Viking raids began, that is during the 700­ new ships, if possible. Old hulls beyond repair served as cof­ 900 AD period. Sails had been in common use in Western fins for burials of noble men and women, for fisheries, ferries, Europe long before then. The Nordic Vikings, after having or they were even used as caissons for breakwaters providing adopted the sail, developed it and the use of it in a very a foundation for the breakwater by filling them with rock and strong way making them (the Vikings) the driving force for pulling them out on the winter ice and letting them sink extensive voyages in Western and Eastern Europe waters down. We have examples of this very unique procedure e.g. and territories and finally in the Atlantic to Iceland, Green­ at Loddekaer in the sound between Sweden and Denmark, land and "Vineland" (New Foundland, Canada). the Oeresound (cf BRUUN, 1990, Chapter 1, Port Engineer­ ing. Houston, Texas. Gulf Publishing Company). THE VIKING SHIP HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF It is the sweet dream of a naval architect! Figure 1 shows THE VIKING VESSEL the Viking ship Agnete built as an exact copy of a Viking ship The Viking ship has a long history of development. The found in the ground close to Nykebing, a town on the Danish oldest vessels which we know of had no sails, only oars. An Baltic on the island of Falster (ROSENDAL, 1993). It is sad example of that is the Nydam Boat found in the moors of that we do not have any photos of the Viking vessels when South Jutland at Nydam, dated 320 AD. It is exhibited in the they were going strong. But we have found their remains on Schleswig-Holstein Archaeological Museum in Schleswig, the Danish and Norwegian shores, making it possible to con­ North Germany. struct copies of them. The best preserved of all Viking vessels Although the oar-driven ships travelled long distances in found so far are the two Norwegian burial-vessels, the Ose­ more protected waters like the Baltic Sea, it was not until berg and the Gokstad vessels excavated in the province of the vessels started using sails that the real far-reaching Vi­ Vestfold in 1880 and 1904, respectively. Dendrochronological king vessel appeared and operated in the Scandinavian coun­ data reveal that burials took place in the years 834 and 900­ tries, England, France and in several Slavic countries, in the 905 AD, respectively (Figure 2). Such magnificant burials Baltic Sea. And the magnificant vessel finally found its way were reserved kings, chieftans and women of nobility as de­ to the New World, that is New Foundland, around year 1000 scribed by E. ROSENDAL (1993). AD (Leif Eriksson from Greenland). At Skuldelev in Denmark one found in a narrow sidefiord Archaeological finds show that the Nordic Viking ship was of the Roskilde Fjord on the island of Seeland five vessels, by no means a standard type vessel. It demonstrated true which apparently were sunk to the bottom to provide a sub­ individual designs with its designers' footprints and often had merged barrier blocking the passage of (enemy) vessels. Some regional characteristics, e.g. in its choice of materials from of these vessels are described below. Many other ships were regional forests, that is pine from Norway and Sweden, and found in Scandinavia, England, Germany and Ireland, where oak from Denmark. These nordic vessels had their particular they were built. The Danish vessels were often built of Nor­ wegian wood. One important technical detail all types of 96072 received 25 June 1996; accepted in revision 10 August 1996. ships have in common: They are all built with overlapping The Viking Ship 1283

Figure 1. The Viking vessel Agnete which is a reproduction of th e Viking vessel found at Gedesby on the Isalnd of Falster in the Danish Baltic. Agnete was buil t by the Marin e-Technol ogical Center at th e Town of Nykebing. (Printe d in Nyhedsbreu No. 5 from th e Center in th e Town of Roskilde), boards in the sideboards fastened together with iron spikes and trimmed with an axe. No sa w was used, becau se th at and packed with soft materi als like ha ir and tar, making th e would weak en th e timber . In all this gave relatively sma ll hull of the vessel waterproof. The vessel has a keel and sharp­ dimensions and a very elas tic design. Th e joints between th e ly curv ed, very streamlined bows and ste rns. The boards have boards of th e hull and th e cross frames wer e in flexible lash­ softly curv ed features between the keel and the railing, and ing, or wooden spikes were used. The entire vessel becam e betwe en the keel and th e bow and st ern. The number of very elas tic and highly maneuver abl e. Ther e is no ste rn rud­ boards vary with the ship size. Boards are usually cut with der of the type we use today. Inst ead a large and very flexibl e the fibers following the shape of the final board. The boards sideru dder as seen in Figure 3b (ROSENDAL , 1993), which are supported by frames as shown in Figure 3a, which dem­ also leaves an impression of th e "tholepins"- for th e oars. onstrates various stages in the advancement of construction Oars were used in narrow straits and fairways, in headw inds of a Vikin g ship (R OSENDAL, 1993), which refers to Skuldelev where there was no alte rnative for crossing by th e wind. War­ No. 3. At th e top of each fram e there is a crossmember with ships of course were highly dependen t upon oars to obtain a "knee" on either side to stabilize th e boards. higher speeds in critical situa tions . Generally th ese ships wer e built to unite light weight, elas­ The Viking ship could not have accomplished wha t it ac­ ticity and structural st ability. This was obtained by proper tually did with respect to travel over long distan ces and in selection of materials combined with superb workman ship. raiding oper ations without sail s as seen in Figure 4. These Frames or timber rib s were cut out radially of large timber sails could be opera ted, increasing or decreasing th eir effec-

Jou rnal of Coasta l Research, Vol. 13, No. 4, 1997 1284 Bruun

Figure 2.The Gok st ad -Vessel. Viking Ship Museu m outsid e Oslo , Norway. The ship is 23.3 m long, 5.25 m wide midship. The height from the bottom of the keel to th e railing is 1.95 m . It ha s 16 board-planks on either side , 16 oar-holes a nd 32 shields attached to the shield -plank on either side. The chieftan mu st have been buried in th e vessel abo ut the year 900 (Else Rosen dal , 1993 ).

Journal of Coas tal Researc h, Vol. 13, No.4, 1997 The Viking Shi p 1285

Figure 3a . Various ste ps in th e constru ction of the Viking vessel Sh uldeleo 3 (Else Rosen da hl, Gyldenda l Publisher s, Copenhagen, 1993).

tive areas . Vessels were provided with iron anchors similar ident ify them from the saga descri ptions when we un cover to those we use today. th e ships afte r 1,000 years. The sagas praise the vessels for From written materi als-mainly the sagas-we know of their overall sailing qualities. Trading vess els, of course , wer e ma ny different types of viking vessels, but it is difficult to less interesting than na vy (raiding) vessels. They were called

Journ al of Coas tal Resear ch, Vol. 13, No. 4, 1997 1286 Bruun

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Figure 3b. Siderudder and thol epin s. Newsletter No.1 (Maritime Archaeology, Roskilde, Decemb er 1993).

"skeid", "snekka" or "knorr" in the old Nordic Language. The tholepins were distributed over the entire length of the ideal ships for wave conditions were long, narrow, flexible, vessel with two at each space between framings. From the ships which could sail and be rowed fast. The practical dis­ number of oar-pins or holes the number of crew members tinction between the Nordic Viking vessels is warships and may be counted. Oar-holes may be closed when not in use . travelships on one side and trading vessels on the other side. The mast may be raised or laid down by a special design Besides, different types of smaller ships serving various func­ using a supporter for the mast in deck elevation as seen in tions like ferries and fishing vessels were also built. Figure 3b. In warfare it is important that a mast does not stick up WARSHIPS revealing the pre sense of the vessel. The combination of sails and oars provides excellent maneuvering possibilities. The Warships like Figure 4 were long, narrow, with rather vessel can be used in the sea as well as in rivers. It can pass small depths of the hull. Usually they had a full deck. Oar below bridges, move independently of winds and is able to

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Figu re 4. War sh ip found at Skuldelev. It is 29 m long, 4 m wide and Figure 5. War ship found at Skuldelev. It is 17.4 m long. Viking Ship had a full deck. Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde (Else Roscndal, 1993). Museum , Roskilde (Else Rosendal, 1993).

Journal of Coastal Research, Vol. 13, No.4, 1997 The Vikin g Ship 1287

provided with very fine carvings. The two Norwegian vessels were probabl y built to be used as burial vesse ls. They are not ships of a normal type, neither for war, nor for tra de. In a second group we find more common war and travel vessels like th e Skuldeleu No.2 (Figure 5). They are slim and fast moving ships built for transport of many men . It was undoubtedly those kinds of vess els, which were used for the raids-across the North Sea and further away in Europe, west and east. Such a 20 m long vessel from the late Viking peri od was found in well preserved condition in th e Hedeby Port in Schleswig , southern Jutland. It demonstrated a perfection in workmanship similar to th at experienced with the Gokstad and Oseberg vessels. It was likely a ship belonging to a chief­ tan in the late 900s. The Gokstad vessel (Figure 2) is 23.2 m long and 5.25 m wide in th e middl e. The depth from railing to keel was 1.95 Figure 6. A trade vessel found at Sk uld elev. Built of pin e in Norw ay . It m. It ha s 16 boards or planks on either side. Board No. 3 was 16.5 m long, 4.5 m wide midship. The keel/railing distan ce was about from above had 16 oar-holes on either side . To these holes 32 2 m. It had 12 boards on either side and a few oar-holes in th e bow and stern sections . Sail area was about 100 m', dr aft 1.25 m. Load ing capacity shields wer e fastened with consecutive overl apping. Shields about 24 tons or 40 m", Cre w 6 men (Else Rosend al, 1993). wer e painted alternatively yellow and black. Thirty-two oar s wer e found and the remains of three rowboats, th e largest about 10 m long. The number of shields indicates a crew of encounter difficult wind and current conditions, all , of cour se, about 70 men , making two shifts for rowing. The chieftan was up to a certain level. buried around the year 900 AD. An interesting feature of the war vessel is the uppermost The Oseberg vesse l, similar to th e Gokstad vesse l is 21.4 m board or plank, which carries th e so-called "Shield List", long, beam width 5.1 m and depth railing to keel is 1.58 m. where all the shi elds of the warriers were tied up. They were It has 12 board planks on either side, which are swung up painted in various colours, usually made of tough wood, high and elegantly terminating in spirals. Th ere were 30 oars ma inly oak. To that group of vessels belong the so-called in the ship together with various other kinds of materials "King" or "Chieftan" vesse ls of luxury class, wider and more belonging to the vessel. The upper board plank ha s 15 oar­ roomy than the normal vessels. The Oseberg and Gokstad ves­ holes on either side. The shield plank is ra th er thin. sels (Figure 2) belong to that group of "decora tive" vessels. The Skuldeleu vessel (Figure 4) is about 29 m long with a The Oseberg vessel , however, is not very strongly built . It is max beam width of 4 m. It is a war vesse l. So is Skuldeleu

Figure 7. The Sh uldeleo No.3 trad e vessel is the best preser ved of all the Skuldelev vessels. It was bui lt of oak in Denmark. The entire bow and midship sections are intact. It is 13.8 m long and 3.4 m wide midship. The dist ance keel to rai ling is 1.6 m. It has 8 boards on eithe r side. The compact uni t bow section is 3.7 m long and 0.55 m wide and well preserved. Only a few oar-holes were found . Sail area 45 m", draft 0.84 m, loading capacity 4.6 tons. Effective crew 5 men (Else Rosendal, 1995).

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No.5 which had 2 X 12 oar-holes and a shield list. Skuldelev The Danish Sk uldelev No. 3 vessel (Figure 7) is th e best 5 was in poor condition. It is 17.4 m long. The upper board preserved of all Skuldelev-vessels. Most of the hull is intact. planks were missing, the seven lowest planks were there. The The ship was built of oak, probably in the Roskilde area near crew mu st have been 40-50 men . The shi p apparently was Skuldelev in Denmark. It is a relatively small full-bodied ves­ built in Ireland around the year 1070 AD. Some spiral iron sel, 13.8 m long and 3.4 m wide mid sh ip. The depth from keel tap e which was found appare ntly was neck-curls belonging to railing is 1.6 m. It had 8 boards on either side. The one­ to the drake heads. The upturned bows were probably paint­ piece bow was well preserved. It is 3.7 m long and 0.55 m ed. So was the row of shields which glorified the vessel and wide , cut out of one piece of timber. Either side of th e vessel its magnificant features. is built with overlapping board planks joining in th e tip of The great Viking king, Svend Tweebeard, left Denmark the bow. There were a few oar-holes on the half deck. The with a Viking fleet in 1013 en route to England. The French sa il area mu st have been about 45 m-, depth was 0.84 m and historian, the monk from St. Orner monastary in Flanders, the load capacity was 4.6 ton s (12 m -). The fully loaded vessel wrote about the year 1040 his views on the Viking vessel and could carry cargo of an average weight of 0.38 ts/m:'. The crew fleets, whi ch he probably never sa w, as follows: "After the was 3 men . Vikings were gathered they went about the ship. The single For trad ing vessels it is, of course , of importance how much chie ftan was distinguishable from the design of the bow of load the vessel is able to carry. An old rul e is th at a vessel their vessel. This could involve lions in gold, and on the top sh all have a free-board of %of th e depth (keel-railing) mid­ of the mast birds turn ing in the direction of the wind, drakes ship to be suitable for ocean voages. We have very precise spewing fire out of their nose, human beings in gold and sil­ information on that from th e two Skuldelev-vessels, because ver, besides bulls, dolphins in bronze and a number of un­ the in form ation is based on copies built in full sca le with high kn own animals in cast metal. The sides of the ships wer e precision. Th ese vessels, the Saga S iglar, and the Roar Ege, painted in bright colours and included wood-carvings. The were tested for sailing chara cte ristics, dr afts, man euvering King's vessel, of cours e, was th e most decorated. Such mag­ and crew! Th e result was amaz ing with respect to load ca­ nificant fleet was ready for action leaving in military for­ pacity. No doubt th e ship mu st have been built for carrying mation with the King's vessel in th e middle with the other gene ral cargo not luxury goods. In other words they were ex­ ships behind and on either sid e of the King's vessel" (edite d port vessels. from translation by M. Cl. Gertz publish ed in The World of In accordance with gen er al practi ces crew memb er s shared the Vikings, by Else Rosendal , Gyldendal Publisher, Den­ the load equa lly, travelled ind ependently, which of cour se in­ mark, 1993 ). creased capacities . The load-capacity for th e Klaastad-Aesku­ Nordi c poetry has in its own old Nordi c Style described kaerr a nd Hedeby vessels as 13 ton s, 18-20 tons and 38 tons , ships and fleets, e.g. as "whe n Magnus (the King) let his ves­ respectively. For th e Skuldelev vessel load s were 24 tons for sel run over the seas it is just like th e heavenl y angels gliding No.1 (Figure 6) which was an oceangoing vessel and 4.6 tons over the wate rs"! for No. 3 (Figu re 7), a coaste r built in a Dani sh fjord. For A more typi cal trade vessel is the vessel (Figu re 6) built of river tran sport such ships were less suitable. Here rowing­ pine in Norway and nam ed Skuldelev No.1. It is 16.5 m long, vessels wer e necessary, in Sweden, e.g. on the Gota-River, in 4.5 m wide midship. Th e depth from ra iling to keel is about easte rn Eu rope on th e Eastern-European rivers. Her e it was 1.25 m. It had 12 board planks on eithe r side. The ship was even necessary to have ships which could be hauled or very solid with numerous reinforcing elements . It only had a dragged across dry land in shorter sections. Vesse ls, th ere­ few oar-holes located in the hald -deck area of the bow and at fore , could not be too heavy. As an exa mple the weight of th e the ste rn . It s sail area was about 100 m" and the loading Roar Ege (Sku ldelev No. 3) was about 2 tons. Such a vessel cap acity was 24.5 tons (40 m"). The ship could be handled was found in Lak e Tings-Staede Tr aeske on th e Island of Got­ effectively by a crew of 6 men with equal jobs split among land in the Swedish Baltic. It was 8 m long and 2 m wide. them. On the basis of boats found on th e southe rn Baltic and sev­ eral sai ling shi ps shown in rock-carvings on th e Island of Got­ FREIGHT AND TRADE VESSELS: GENERAL land it was possibl e to produce a copy called "The Kramp­ machen", which with a crew of 10 people and a cargo of iron Trad e vessels wer e ships of a different design . They had was able to advance through eastern- Europea n rivers, first more depth and width and they had half decks in th e bow on th e river Wisla, and next on various river s, hauling it over and in the stern with a large room for cargo in the middle. some dry land, on the way to the final destination, Istanbul. The ma st was fastened solidly in the bottom of the hull-struc­ Constructio n detail s and geometries in connection with ture and could be raised or lowered according to needs, just sai ling tests with true copies have given realistic information as with the warship. The oar holes were few. They were about shi p's usages. The vessel which th e Norwegian chieftan placed on the half deck and prob ably only used in narrow Ottar from Haalogaland in th e northern Norway used for his straits or sounds. All frei ght vessels carried sail s. long voyages could well have been similar to the type of ships Among the Nordic trade vessels from th e Viking age is the which travelled to Iceland and Greenl and continuing finally Klaastad Vessel found at the old trading-center Kaupang, to "Vinela nd" (New Foundland), The copy of Saga Sig lar has Vestfold, Oslo Fiord, and the Aeskekaerr vessel found near the handled rough voyages in the North Atlantic. And in the Kat­ outlet of the Gota-River near Goth enburg, Sweden , probably tegat between Sweden and Denmark and in th e Danish built in the 900s. Straits to th e Baltic the vessel, Skuldelev 3 (Figure 7) is an

J ourn al of Coastal Research, Vol. 13, No.4, 1997 The Viking Ship 1289 excellent vessel, as proven by sa iling tests by the copy of Roar sociate d with large roads, wh ere Viking for ces gathered be­ Ege. fore departure on the raids to foreign countries. They were Sailing tests with th ese and other copies have shown that supported by large forts surrounded by circular walls. Best under favorable condi tions by wind s they could make 6-8 known are on Seeland, Denmark, in knots (l knot = 1 nautical mile = 1.85 km), The Saga S iglar ea stern Jutland, Denmark, and-not least-Aggersborg, even reached 10 knots over 6 hours in a gale wind in the the giant fort within a circular earthern wall of 240 m dia . North Sea . Roar Ege mad e 9 knots in a cross wind . The trad­ located in the middle of the Limfj ord with sea-connections ing vessels often had to beat up against the wind. Apparently to England (west) a nd Norway (north) and to the inner they wer e able to sail up to 60 degrees against the wind , Danish seas. A very special military installation, the Kan­ making 1.5 to 2 knots under favorable conditions. hav e Kanal, on the Danish island of Samsoe in the middle With respect to navigation th e viking trade and other ves­ of the Kattegat wa s passable for vessels up to 1% m draft sels navigated along the shore, where landmarks were avail­ from the Stavn sfjord to Kattegat. The canal had slopes cov­ able, casting anchor for th e night. Th is was attar's way of ered with wooden planks which allowed dendrochronolog­ navigating on his journey from Haalogaland in northern Nor­ ical determination of it s con struction date, to the ye ar 726 way to Sciringsdal in th e western part of the Oslo Fjord: AD. From a high point in the vicinity of the canal it wa s There are also reports on continuous cruisings over several possible to observe vessels in the sea beyond. days as done by the tradesman Wulffstan on his trips in the An idea about the dimensions of the viking fort s one get s Baltic from Hedeby in Schleswig to Trusoe in the Danzig from the above mentioned Aggersborg in the . In side (Gdansk) Bay. Thi s travel took him seven day s and nights its 240 m circular wall 48 buildings were located. They were and he must have navigated by depth soundings . Over the 28.5 by 7.5 m in base area and provided quarters for 70-80 open sea, e.g. from Norw ay to th e Sh etl and Islands, to Ice­ warriors, who could rest and sleep inside before departure land, from Denmark to England and Ireland navigation had for, probably, England. Aggersborg, no doubt, also served as to rely on different procedures. We have little knowledge a base for raids against Norway. From here it was easy to about the navigational aids used by th e Vikings. Most likely travel to Norway, where King Harald Blaatand (Bluetooth) they had a rather precise feeling for tim e and speeds obtained had special inte rests. From Aggerbo rg it was possible to con­ from seabirds, wave patterns, and from the stars , knowing trol and levy taxes on all north/south going traffic up and th e sun position. Apart from th e very long voyages to Iceland, down the Danish ma inland, Jutland, conn ected to Germany Greenland and New Foundland vessels did not move long dis­ in its southern section. It was a true "bottleneck", north/south tances. The trip from the westcoast of Denmark to the east­ as well as east/west. Most likely the large fort is) were coast of England, e.g. from th e entrance to the Limfjord to planned and built by , but they may have th e Tyn e entrance, may be mad e in 1.5 days under optimal been aba ndoned by his son, Svend Tweebeard, who forced his conditions. But wind s wer e usu ally blowing from the western father out of Denmark-and established the Danish Kingdom quadrant. Between Norw ay and Iceland ships would pass the in England. The imp ortance of the above mentioned forts is, Sh etland Islands and next the Faroe Islands. Th e very in­ peculiarly enough, not stated in any ea rly history. They were genious navigation instrument, whi ch assisted navigation on found by archaeologists who wrote their "history"- of a rel­ long voyages utilized th e Doppler effect obtained from a crys­ atively short, but very glorious life time of perhaps only 50­ tal found in the easte rn part of Iceland. For shorte r trips, e.g. 100 years . They were th e accomplishment of a strong cen­ to Engl and, land was never too far away from th e vessels tralised govern ment and an almighty King and his loyal navigation line. The Nordic countries on their shores have chieftans. many good harbours and th e vessels had low dr afts so th at th ey could ea sily run up th e bea ch - and down again. Thi s­ CONCLUSION not least-was true for th e slim and well manned warsh ips . The Viking ships, built in Scandinavia 900-1,100 yea rs Large trading vessels, like th e Sk uldelev 1 (Figure 6), mu st ago, had superior sailing characteristi cs which mad e the Vi­ have been loaded and unl oaded by the assista nce of sma ller kin g raids in Northern Europe, finally exte nded to Vineland vesse ls, where port facilities were not avail able. However, the (New Foundland), possible. The two type s of vessels, the war larger port tra ding cente rs, such as e.g. Hed eby in Schleswig, and th e trad e vessel, were equa lly well designed and built. Birka in Sweden and Kaupang in Norway, had pier s and The se ships formed strong navies. Their operations had a wharves! las ting influ ence on the shores and the countries, wher e they During the winter seas on shi ps wer e in many cases opera te d. Their hydrodyn am ic properties were second to none placed in sepa ra te buildin gs, the so call ed Nausts, in par­ at that time. They are deeply admire d by contemporary na val tic ula r in Norway a nd in Iceland,(whe re restaurants today architects . Scandinavians are proud of the m! carry the name Nau st). Shipya rds were also avai lable, e.g . in Hed eby. On Gotland, Swe de n, a nd in Denma rk , verita­ liTERATURE CITED ble shi pya rds from the late Viking ag e were found, e.g. at Pav iken , Gotla nd, a nd on the Danish island of Fal ster in ROSENDAL, E., 1993. Viki ngernes lk rden (The World of the Vikings ). Copenhagen: Gyldenda l Publish er , 329p. lIn Dan ish! the Baltic. It is also interesting to note, how old ships wer e Essays for Cr umlin-Pedersen, the Viking Ship Museum, Rosk ilde, scr apped and materials re-u sed, as it e.g. ca n be seen from 1995, 334p. Newsletters no. 1 and 5, Maritime Archaeology, Ros­ the warsh ip Skuldelev 5 (Figure 5). Na val ports were as- kilde, Denmark. lIn Dan ish!

Journa l of Coastal Research, Vol. 13, No.4, 1997