Viking Ship Museum

Why it is renowned

The museum shows the five Skuldelev ships, original Viking ships of five types, from cargo ships to warships.¹ Digging for its boatyard in the late 1990s uncovered nine more ships, the largest such find in Northern Europe, among them Roskilde 6, at about 37 metres the longest Viking ship ever found.¹ Its reconstructions sail every summer to learn how the Vikings navigated, and the museum carries out research and trains researchers in maritime and experimental archaeology.¹

The story

Around 1070, five ships were sunk at Skuldelev to block the main channel of Roskilde Fjord against attack from the sea; they were excavated in 1962.¹ The museum was built on the shore of the fjord in 1969 to show them.¹ Its boatyard on Museumsøen builds full-size reconstructions by original methods, and its collection holds more than 40 boats from across Scandinavia.¹ Visitors can row and sail on the fjord every day from May to September.²

What to know it by

• The Skuldelev shipsFive original Viking ships, sunk around 1070
• Roskilde 6The longest Viking ship found, about 37 m
• Museumsøen boatyardReconstructions built by original methods
• Sea StallionSummer voyage on Roskilde Fjord and Isefjord