The three Viking ships we saw in Oslo were buried in clay alongside important people who had died. In contrast the Roskilde ships were intentionally scuttled in the late 11th century at the mouth of a fjord to defend against invaders. So they aren't quite as well-preserved, but there are five ships of different types: two longships, a fishing vessel, an ocean-going cargo ship, and a coastal trading ship.
Our tour guide explained how the ships were excavated and preserved, and how the museum has used them to get a better understanding of how the Vikings were able to sail to the far corners of the early Medieval world.
Boatwrights at the museum have constructed a fleet of replica ships that you can sail on in the summertime. We found out the hard way that these are historically accurate replicas; there are no handy diesel engines involved! In order to get in or out of the harbor, passengers have to row.
We had signed on for an hour-long trip. Our tour guide gave us a quick safety briefing and taught us the basics of rowing, stowing the oars, and hoisting the sail. In this photo, she is adjusting the sheets. But if she's up there, who's at the tiller?!
Haha, you guessed it -- this guy!
Kevin had the helm while we were under sail so that the guide could handle the sheets and answer questions. It was a great trip, we even managed to sail on a reasonably close haul on the way back. Of course, we still had to row back into the harbor at the end! Which turned us into some very hungry Vikings. We went for some New Nordic Viking food at Cafe Knarr near the museum: smoked salmon, and a plank with Viking sausage, beer-braised pork, pearl barley salad, and Nordic cheeses. Oh, and of course two kinds of mead! Skål! Huzzah! (Or whatever Vikings used to say...)
From the museum we had a great view of Roskilde Cathedral, our next stop, on the hill above.
The Cathedral was built in brick (a new technology at the time!) starting in 1170 and taking more than a hundred years to complete.
Roskilde is where the majority of Danish monarchs are buried, in increasingly ornate tombs and chapels.
We were fascinated by this mechanical clock that dates from the 1400's. Every hour, St. George slays the dragon (which emits a whistly "scream") and then the other man rings the bell to sound the hours while the lady shakes her head. The clock also displays 24 hours instead of the normal twelve. Weird and whimsical.
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