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Viking Museum Haithabu
Scale model of a Knarr, a traditional Norse merchant and cargo ship from the Viking Age.
Exhibited at the Viking Museum Haithabu (Wikingermuseum Haithabu) near Schleswig, Germany, which highlights the history of the important Viking trading settlement of Hedeby.
Photo: Don Hitchcock 2018
Source: Wikingermuseum Haithabu
Key Features of the Knarr:
Unlike longships built primarily for speed and warfare, knarrs were wider, deeper, and shorter, designed to haul heavy trade goods like timber, wool, furs, wheat, and livestock. They used the classic Viking clinker-built method (overlapping wooden planks) and relied heavily on a single large square sail, supplemented by a few oars when needed.
Knarrs were used for trade, cargo transport, and colonisation. They were used to carry livestock, wool, timber, and supplies over long ocean routes. The hull shape was short, wide, and deep, and featured a high freeboard (sides) to withstand rough, open-ocean waves and a broad beam for maximum stability.
They were primarily sail-driven, and relied on a single massive square sail. Oars were only used for manoeuvring in harbours or during dead calms. They were half-decked with an open cargo hold (halfrými) in the centre. Crew and passengers sat on small decks at the bow and stern.
They had a deep draft, requiring deeper water to float, they could not easily sail up shallow rivers or land directly on any beach, and had a small crew (typically 10 to 30 people), minimising the food and water needed for long oceanic voyages.
Text above: Various sources
A model of a Viking longship with a red-and-yellow striped sail displayed inside the Wikinger Museum Haithabu (Viking Museum at Hedeby) near Schleswig, Germany.
Longships were used for warfare, raiding, troop transport, and speed. They were designed to move warriors quickly and strike without warning. The hull Shape was long, narrow, and shallow, built sleek to slice through water quickly and maximise hull flexibility in waves.
They were designed to be of dual-propulsion, and were equipped with a large sail but they were heavily reliant on continuous oar power. Oar ports ran down nearly the entire length of the hull.
Longships were fully open or low-decked across the whole length to maximise rowing benches and space for warriors. They were of ultra-shallow draft, making them capable of navigating shallow rivers deep inland and landing directly on beaches for sudden amphibious raids. They had a large crew (ranging from 30 to over 80 warriors/rowers), packed tightly together to form a highly concentrated fighting force.
Photo: Don Hitchcock 2018
Text: Various sources
Source: Wikinger Museum Haithabu
References
- Dibble et al. , 2006: Taphonomy and the concept of Palaeolithic cultures: The case of the Tayacian from Fontéchevade PaleoAnthropology 2006, 1−21. Copyright © 2006 Paleoanthropology Society. All rights reserved.
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