Editing Vikings (section)

===Ships===
{{Main|Viking ships}}
{{multiple image
| align     = right
| direction =
| total_width = 360
| image1    = Exhibition in Viking Ship Museum, Oslo 01.jpg
| width1    =
| alt1      =
| caption1  = [[Prow]] of the [[Oseberg ship]], at Oslo [[Viking Ship Museum (Oslo)|Museum]]
| image2    =
| width2    =
| alt2      =
| caption2  = Head post from the Oseberg ship
| footer    =
}}

<!--
[[File:Exhibition in Viking Ship Museum, Oslo 01.jpg|thumb|[[Prow]] of the [[Oseberg ship]], at Oslo [[Viking Ship Museum (Oslo)|Museum]]]]

-->
There have been several archaeological finds of Viking ships of all sizes, providing knowledge of the craftsmanship that went into building them. There were many types of Viking ships, built for various uses; the best-known type is probably the [[longship]].<ref>Longships are sometimes erroneously called ''drakkar'', a corruption of "dragon" in Norse.</ref> Longships were intended for warfare and exploration, designed for speed and agility, and were equipped with oars to complement the sail, making navigation possible independently of the wind. The longship had a long, narrow hull and shallow draught to facilitate landings and troop deployments in shallow water. Longships were used extensively by the [[Leidang]], the Scandinavian defence fleets. The longship allowed the Norse to ''go Viking'', which might explain why this type of ship has become almost synonymous with the concept of Vikings.<ref>Hadingham, Evan: [https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ancient/viking-ships.html Secrets of Viking Ships] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170912023933/http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/ancient/viking-ships.html |date=12 September 2017 }} (05.09.00) NOVA science media.</ref><ref>Durham, Keith: ''Viking Longship'' Osprey Publishing, Oxford, 2002.</ref>

The Vikings built many unique types of watercraft, often used for more peaceful tasks. The ''[[knarr]]'' was a dedicated merchant vessel designed to carry cargo in bulk. It had a broader hull, a deeper draught, and a small number of oars (used primarily to manoeuvre in harbours and similar situations). One Viking innovation was the '[[beitass]]', a spar mounted to the sail that allowed their ships to sail effectively against the wind.<ref>Block, Leo, [https://archive.org/details/toharnesswindsho00bloc ''To Harness the Wind: A Short History of the Development of Sails''] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101203825/https://books.google.com/books?id=ezgq0VnV5XQC&hl=en |date=1 January 2016 }}, Naval Institute Press, 2002, {{ISBN|1-55750-209-9}}</ref> It was common for seafaring Viking ships to tow or carry a smaller boat to transfer crew and cargo from the ship to shore.

{{multiple image
| align     = right
| direction =
| total_width = 400
| image1    = VIKING LONGSHIP "SEA STALLION" ARRIVES IN DUBLIN.jpg
| width1    =
| alt1      = Sea Stallion
| caption1  = [[Sea Stallion (longship)|A reconstructed longship]]
| image2    = Modell Knorr.jpg
| width2    =
| alt2      = Knarr Haithabu
| caption2  = A model of the ''knarr'' ship type
| footer    = Two typical viking ships
}}

Ships were an integral part of Viking culture. They facilitated everyday transportation across seas and waterways, exploration of new lands, raids, conquests, and trade with neighbouring cultures. They also held a major religious importance. People with high status were sometimes buried in a ship along with animal sacrifices, weapons, provisions and other items, as evidenced by the buried vessels at [[Gokstad]] and [[Oseberg]] in Norway<ref>Ian Heath, The Vikings, p. 4, Osprey Publishing, 1985.</ref> and the excavated ship burial at [[Ladby ship|Ladby]] in Denmark. Ship burials were also practised by Vikings overseas, as evidenced by the excavations of the [[Salme ships]] on the Estonian island of [[Saaremaa]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.archaeology.org/issues/95-1307/features/941-vikings-saaremaa-estonia-salme-vendel-oseberg |title=The First Vikings |magazine=Archaeology |publisher=the Archaeological Institute of America |first=Andrew |last=Curry |date=10 June 2013 |access-date=22 February 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140228192503/http://www.archaeology.org/issues/95-1307/features/941-vikings-saaremaa-estonia-salme-vendel-oseberg |archive-date=28 February 2014 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Well-preserved remains of five Viking ships were excavated from [[Roskilde Fjord]] in the late 1960s, representing both the longship and the ''knarr''. The ships were scuttled there in the 11th century to block a navigation channel and thus protect [[Roskilde]], then the Danish capital, from a seaborne assault. The remains of these ships are on display at the [[Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde]].

In 2019, archaeologists uncovered two Viking boat graves in Gamla Uppsala. They also discovered that one of the boats still holds the remains of a man, a dog, and a horse, along with other items.<ref>{{cite web|last=Sherry|first=Sophie|date=5 July 2019|title=Archaeologists expected a routine dig in Sweden, but they uncovered two rare Viking burial boats|url=https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/viking-burial-ship-trnd/index.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190709104600/https://www.cnn.com/travel/article/viking-burial-ship-trnd/index.html|archive-date=9 July 2019|access-date=6 July 2019|website=CNN Travel|language=en}}</ref> This has shed light on the death rituals of Viking communities in the region.

{{clear}}