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| · | Building Snorri | |
| · | Sailing Snorri | |
| · | The Original Viking Ships | |
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Click on the images below to view enlargements
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Nomads of the North Atlantic:
The Original Viking Ships
Without their marvelous sailing ships, the Vikings would have played a much smaller part in history. But centuries of getting around on the water created a race of master boatbuilders, and the ships they developed represented a giant step forward in the design and capabilities of coastal and seagoing vessels.
Viking ships evolved from much earlier and simpler watercraft. Dugouts, for example, existed in Denmark as far back as 5000 B.C. These hollowed-out tree trunks allowed hunters and farmers to travel on lakes and along the ocean shoreline.
Eventually the dugout builders began applying heat to the hollowed trunks, which made the wood more pliable. Then they would force the dugout sides apart with bracing sticks, to make more room inside. The next innovation was to add a plank at the top of each side of the boat - like side rails on a wagon or truck bed - to increase freeboard (height above the water) and carrying capacity. These extra boards were sometimes called "planks of avidity," and were used by fishermen when the fishing was very good.
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Iron was shaped |
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Then came the discovery and working of iron, and with it, stronger hardware and a whole new set of tools. During this period, Vikings began to use the "lapstrake" method of boat construction. In this technique, the hull is built of long planks (called strakes) that overlap each other - the top edge of each plank is covered by the lower edge of the plank above it. Iron rivets through the overlaps clamped the strakes together.
Lapstrake construction allowed the Vikings to produce light hulls that floated on
top of the waves, rather than plowing through them. And their shallow draft meant
they could explore coastal and inland waters, where heavier ships couldn't go.
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Iron rivets were used to fasten the hull strakes together, but elsewhere - in frames, knees, stringers and crossbeams - lashings, and wooden pegs called "treenails," were used. The treenails were not skinny little slivers like the nails we know, but solid pegs about an inch in diameter. The "give" in these fastenings provided the flexibility that allowed the ship to absorb much of the shock of wind and water (following the theory that bending is better than breaking). Building with planks also meant that the Vikings no longer had to search for giant trees to hollow out - planks could be made from much smaller trees.
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Viking boatbuilding tools. The saw was used to cut the ends of boards, but the planks
themselves were split from logs, not sawn.
Ships for every purpose
Not all Viking ships were the fancy warships we usually see in pictures, with the
dragon heads at the bow. A few were luxurious transports for royalty or large landowners.
Some smaller ships, called knarr, were used for coastal trading, keeping close to
shore. This general type was also employed for exploration and emigration - to Iceland,
Greenland and beyond.
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Warships were relatively long and narrow, usually from 50 to well over 100 feet in length. They could carry from 30 to several hundred warriors, many of whom also worked as oarsmen. On these ships there was often a rack or other means of fastening battle shields along the sides of the ship, where they provided protection for the rowers. Holes for the oars had little doors to keep the water out when the oars were put away.
The workhorse knarrs were broader, shorter, and built to carry heavy loads of cargo.
Many were little more than a shell with oars, while others had small decks on each
end with storage space underneath. Knarrs didn't usually sport fancy dragon-head
prows or other ornamentation. They were "strictly business."
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Life on board
When possible, the Vikings liked to sail within sight of land, and at night they
preferred to go ashore and sleep in tents made of skins. On a few of the Viking ships
recovered, there were beds that could be quickly assembled and taken apart. During
part of the Viking era it was common to store weapons and other possessions in large
bags made of skin. At night, these bags could be used as two-person sleeping bags.
Since there was no way to light a cooking fire at sea, whatever the sailors ate was
cold. It is likely that their diet was mainly salted fish or meat, with water or
beer in skin bags to drink. On two of the Viking ships that have been recovered,
there were large cauldrons for cooking onshore.
When the sailors had to sleep on board, they likely picked any spot where they wouldn't
get stepped on. Answering calls of nature was little problem - the bathroom was anywhere
outside the ship.
Making them go - sail, row and carry
Viking ships could go just about anywhere, and get there relatively swiftly. When
the wind blew, the sail was hoisted. Large square sails were often made of wool,
and their value was about equal to that of the rest of the ship. Today, a sail would
typically cost about 1/30 of a sailboat's full price.
By today's standards, Viking sailing rigs weren't very efficient, but they did allow
the ships to point to within about sixty degrees of the wind - upwind, that is, but
not very directly. When there was no wind, it was time to get out the long oars.
Smaller boats might have as few as four oars, which were mainly depended on for maneuvering,
not for getting places. Larger ships, with lots of oars, could achieve a speed of
5-6 knots straight into a stiff wind - better performance than a sail might supply
in such circumstances.
Many Viking ships didn't always require water in order to go places. If an overland
portage was called for, the occupants could simply pick up the ship and carry it
to the next fjord or bay. This capability contributed to the legendary speed and
suddenness of Viking raids. Who would guess that their ships could "sail"
on land?
Changing direction
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On modern replicas of Viking ships, a big topic of discussion is about the rudder - exactly where should it be placed? What size and shape should it be for best performance? Existing artifacts don't satisfactorily answer these questions. One theory even maintains that the Viking ships were steered mainly by repositioning the sail and by shifting the ballast, leaving the rudder for maneuvering near shore and in harbors.
Finding "Point B"
Vikings were the only sailors of medieval Europe prepared to sail far beyond sight of land. They had a variety of ways to help them figure out where on the water they were and where they were going. Watching bird flights helped determine the direction of far-off bodies of land. The North Star, when it was visible - mostly in dark winter months - helped guide them.
In the summer, careful observation of the altitude of the sun throughout the season, as well as its position on the horizon at dawn and sunset, allowed them to figure out the four points of the compass and their latitude (their north-south position). If their observations showed that the angle of the sun had increased, they had wandered too far south. If the angle had lessened, they were too far north.
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A Viking sun compass, or solbrådt, might have looked like this. Only a fragment has ever been recovered. |
Figuring distance traveled, however, was little better than guesswork. A captain could observe the size of his bow wave, or estimate the force of the wind and make a guess based on experience.
Even today, crossing the North Atlantic in a small, open boat would be considered an achievement. A thousand years ago, it was truly a long shot. It's likely that for each Viking discovery of new land there were many previous attempts that failed. So it's not the Viking ships alone, but also the Vikings' courage, daring and determination that made them renowned explorers of the North Atlantic and beyond.
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