The horned helmet myth and daily life
Master shipbuilders and global explorers
The power of Norse women
Gods, runes, and the written word
YOUR GOAL
Master of The real Vikings
misslily Master shipbuilders and global explorers
We sail up the river with a shallow draft, Mastering the oceans in a lightweight craft.
misslily Norse explorers established a settlement in Newfoundland, Canada, around the year 1000 CE.
misslily Norse navigators used wooden sun compasses and optical crystals to find their way across the Atlantic.
Sunstone navigation: Calcite crystals can reveal the sun's position through thick clouds by polarizing light, a trick Norse sailors mastered.
A long, narrow, shallow-draft vessel propelled by oars and sails, historically used by the Norse. These flexible vessels enabled Scandinavian mariners to reach the shores of North America around 1000 CE.
What did Norse merchants from Sweden trade to obtain thousands of silver coins from Baghdad?
What rivers did the eastern Norse traders, known as the Rus, navigate to reach Constantinople?
What unique structural design made Viking longships incredibly flexible in rough seas?