54
Viking burials
BȦȧȰȳȦȵȩȦȤȰȮȪȯȨ of Christianity, Vikings
were buried with everything they would need in
the next world. Traditional ceremonies varied a lot,
and much is still shrouded in mystery. The wealthiest
men and women were buried in ships, to carry them
to the next world. These were crammed full of their
belongings, from clothes and weapons to kitchen
goods and furniture. Horses, dogs, even servants were
killed and laid to rest with the dead Viking. The ships
were then covered with mounds of earth, or set alight
in a blazing funeral pyre. There are stories about
burning ships being pushed out to sea, but there is
no proof that this ever really happened. Other Vikings
were placed in underground chambers in burial
mounds. Even poor peasants were buried with
their favorite sword or brooch.
BURIAL MOUND
Amazing riches have been dug
out of some burial mounds.
Entire ships have survived in the
right soil conditions. Even when
the wood has disintegrated, the
ship’s outlines may be left in
the ground. A ship from a
mound in Ladby on Fyn,
Denmark, has been traced
in this way. Many
mounds contain burial
chambers, not ships.Strakes (planks) get
narrower toward t he prowTHE OSEBERG SHIP
The most beautiful Viking ship of all is
the Oseberg ship. It was discovered in
1903 in a burial mound in Oseberg, near the
Oslo Fjord in Norway. Like the Gokstad ship
(pp. 8–9), it had been preserved by the soggy blue
clay of the fjord. This is the fine oak prow, or stem-
post. It is a modern copy, because only fragments of the
original were left in the mound. Like the stern-post, it is
carved with a brilliant array of animals and people. The prow
ends in a curling snake’s head, and the tip of the stern is the snake’s
tail. The ship is 70 ft 6 in (21.5 m) long and has 15 oarports (holes for
holes) on each side. As many as 30 men were needed to row it. But the
Oseberg ship is a frail vessel that couldn’t have sailed the open ocean. It was
probably only used for state occasions or for sailing up and down the coast.
A mass of ship’s equipment, including a gangplank, bailing bucket, mast, rudder,
steering oar, anchor, and 15 pairs of oars, was found inside.Stem-post is a single piece
of fine oak, joined to t he
keel at t he baseTwelve strakes,
each overlapping
t he one belowOLD MEN
Three humanlike
figures, depicted as
elderly men, are shown
carved inside the prow
of the Oseberg ship.
They have long, wispy
beards and seem to
be a human version
of the gripping
beast (p. 37).Intricate carvings
of lively animalsProw ends in
a snake’s head