In 1996, an extension was begun on the Roskilde Ship Museum in Denmark. The museum was built to house a collection of ships that had been sunk deliberately in order to protect the approach to Roskilde, which had at one time been the royal capital of Denmark. During construction work, some archaeologists noticed very large timbers in the excavations. These proved to be nine more ships, the most remarkable of which was the Roskilde 6 -- the largest Viking warship ever found.
The impressive vessel, which had been a troop ship, is now undergoing conservation work, drying out in huge steel tanks at Brede. Soon, it will once more go across the North Sea, where it will be the star of an exhibition at the British Museum.
Find out more in these news items:
- Rebirth of the Viking warship that may have helped Canute conquer the seas
Extensive article by Maev Kennedy at The Guardian includes a link to an "interactive" slide show.
- Viking warship that dwarfed the Mary Rose and terrorised Europe to make one last journey from Denmark to UK as it heads for British Museum
Feature by Helen Collis at the Daily Mail includes several photos.
- Largest Viking ship in the world on the way to British Museum
Item by Richard Alleyne at The Telegraph.
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