Viking Ship Museum in Oslo
Encyclopedia
Bygdøy
Bygdøy or Bygdø is a peninsula on the western side of Oslo, Norway. Administratively, Bygdøy belongs to the borough of Frogner.Bygdøy has several museums, like the Kon-Tiki Museum, which shows all year long the legendary expeditions of Thor Heyerdahl; the Norwegian Museum of Cultural History ; the...
in Oslo
Oslo
Oslo is a municipality, as well as the capital and most populous city in Norway. As a municipality , it was established on 1 January 1838. Founded around 1048 by King Harald III of Norway, the city was largely destroyed by fire in 1624. The city was moved under the reign of Denmark–Norway's King...
, Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
. It is part of the Museum of Cultural History
Museum of Cultural History
Museum of Cultural History is an organisation at the University of Oslo, Norway. It was established in 1999 as Universitetets kulturhistoriske museum with the merging of the bodies Oldsaksamlingen , Myntkabinettet og Etnografisk museum...
of the University of Oslo
University of Oslo
The University of Oslo , formerly The Royal Frederick University , is the oldest and largest university in Norway, situated in the Norwegian capital of Oslo. The university was founded in 1811 and was modelled after the recently established University of Berlin...
, and houses archaeological
Archaeology
Archaeology, or archeology , is the study of human society, primarily through the recovery and analysis of the material culture and environmental data that they have left behind, which includes artifacts, architecture, biofacts and cultural landscapes...
finds from Tune
Tune, Norway
Tune is a former municipality in Østfold county, Norway. The former municipality originally covered the current Sarpsborg municipality with the exception of Skjeberg and with the addition of Rolvsøy.-History:...
, Gokstad (Sandefjord
Sandefjord
is a city and municipality in Vestfold county, Norway. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Sandefjord. The municipality of Sandefjord was established on 1 January 1838...
), Oseberg (Tønsberg
Tønsberg
is a city and municipality in Vestfold county, southern Norway, located around north-east of Sandefjord. The administrative centre of the municipality is the city of Tønsberg....
) and the Borre mound cemetery
Borre mound cemetery
Borre mound cemetery forms part of the in Horten, Vestfold, Norway....
.
Attractions
The main attractions at the Viking Ship Museum are the Oseberg shipOseberg ship
The Oseberg ship is a well-preserved Viking ship discovered in a large burial mound at the Oseberg farm near Tønsberg in Vestfold county, Norway.-Burial mound:...
, Gokstad ship
Gokstad ship
The Gokstad ship is a Viking ship found in a burial mound at Gokstad farm in Sandar, Sandefjord, Vestfold, Norway.-Discovery:The place where the boat was found, situated on arable land, had long been named Gokstadhaugen or Kongshaugen , although the relevance of its name had been discounted as...
and Tune ship
Tune ship
The Tune ship is a Viking era ship exhibited in the Viking Ship Museum in Bygdøy, Oslo.The "karv" type ship was found at Haugen farm on Rolvsøy in Tune, Østfold, Norway. The ship was built around AD 900, and is made of clinkered oak planks. It was found in a boat burial mound...
. Additionally, the Viking Age
Viking Age
Viking Age is the term for the period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, spanning the late 8th to 11th centuries. Scandinavian Vikings explored Europe by its oceans and rivers through trade and warfare. The Vikings also reached Iceland, Greenland,...
display includes sledges, beds, a horse cart, wood carving, tent components, buckets and other grave goods
Grave goods
Grave goods, in archaeology and anthropology, are the items buried along with the body.They are usually personal possessions, supplies to smooth the deceased's journey into the afterlife or offerings to the gods. Grave goods are a type of votive deposit...
. Many fully or nearly fully intact Viking ships are on display. Its most famous ship is the completely whole Oseberg ship
Oseberg ship
The Oseberg ship is a well-preserved Viking ship discovered in a large burial mound at the Oseberg farm near Tønsberg in Vestfold county, Norway.-Burial mound:...
.
History
In 1913, Swedish professor Gabriel GustafsonGabriel Gustafson
Gabriel Adolf Gustafson was a Swedish-Norwegian archaeologist. He was responsible for the excavation and conservation of the Oseberg ship. -Biography:...
proposed a specific building to house Viking Age
Viking Age
Viking Age is the term for the period in European history, especially Northern European and Scandinavian history, spanning the late 8th to 11th centuries. Scandinavian Vikings explored Europe by its oceans and rivers through trade and warfare. The Vikings also reached Iceland, Greenland,...
finds that were discovered at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. The Gokstad and Oseberg ships had been stored in temporary shelters at the University of Oslo. An architectural contest was held, and Arnstein Arneberg
Arnstein Arneberg
Arnstein Rynning Arneberg was a Norwegian architect. He was active as an architect for 50 years and is often considered the leading architect in Norway of his time. -Background:...
won.
The hall for the Oseberg ship was built with funding from the Parliament of Norway, and the ship was moved from the University shelters in 1926. The halls for the ships from Gokstad and Tune were completed in 1932. Building of the last hall was delayed, partly due to the Second World War
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, and this hall was completed in 1957. It houses most of the other finds, mostly from Oseberg.
Moving the ships
On 20 December 2006 the University of Oslo supported a proposal by the Historical museum to move the ships and all the grave goodsGrave goods
Grave goods, in archaeology and anthropology, are the items buried along with the body.They are usually personal possessions, supplies to smooth the deceased's journey into the afterlife or offerings to the gods. Grave goods are a type of votive deposit...
to a proposed new museum in Bjørvika
Bjørvika
Bjørvika is a neighborhood in the Sentrum borough of Oslo, Norway. The area is an inlet in the inner Oslofjord, situated between Gamlebyen and Akersness. It serves as an outlet for the river Akerselva. Since the 2000s, it has been undergoing urban redevelopment, being transformed from a container...
, Oslo. There has been much debate about this suggestion, both in the museum and archaeological community as well as in the media. Opponents to the move have raised concerns that the ships are too fragile and that they will not survive the move undamaged, while proponents claim that it is far more risky to leave the ships in their current location due to the hazards of fire and overcrowding. A risk assessment has been carried out on one side of the Oseberg ship, suggesting a move could go ahead without inflicting serious damage to the finds.
Other sources
- Brøgger, A. W. and Schetelig, H. Osebergfundet (Oslo. 1917)
- Brøgger A.W. and Shetelig, H. Vikingskipene deres forgjenger og etterfølgere (Oslo. 1950)
- Christensen, Arne Emil Kongsgårdens håndtverkere, Osebergdronningens grav, vår arkeologiske nasjonalskatt i nytt lys (Oslo. 1992)
- Ingstad, Anne Stine Hva har tekstilene vært brukt til? Osebergdronningens grav (Oslo. 1992)