What was life like in the Viking Age? How did it feel to be aboard the longships on the way to battle? Although historians don’t know the answers to all questions about the Viking Age, they do know a lot about how the Vikings lived, what their ships looked like, and where they traveled on their voyages.
Home of five world-famous Viking ships, the Viking Ship Museum in Roskilde, Denmark, is a place where visitors can learn about ships, seafaring, and boatbuilding culture in ancient and medieval times. The museum has gathered knowledge about the Vikings that teachers and their students can explore online. The website is full of exciting stories—partly about the late Viking Age, partly about those scientific issues related to the ships, the sail, and the navigation.
The Education section helps teachers use the site in their classes. One of the features is an interactive map of the Viking Age. In the ninth century, new seafaring routes were discovered, making it possible for sailing ships to reach worlds far from familiar shores. At seafaring’s nodal points, complex new cultures, towns, networks, and communities emerged—and trading thrived. Voyages connected coasts the world over and brought together people of different ideas, beliefs, and traditions. The interactive map lets learners see the seafaring routes that connected coasts and people in the Viking Age.
The Education section also provides assignments about the Vikings and the Viking Age, and instructions for activities that students can do independently. Teachers will find assignments about the society of the Viking Age and the everyday life of the Vikings. The tasks include the gods of the North, the kings of the Viking Age, the appearance of the Vikings, Christianity in the Viking Age, trade, and the emergence of cities. The assignments may be a set of questions to be solved in front of the computer or on paper, or they may be practical indoor or outdoor exercises. Also provided is an estimate of which subjects and age groups the assignments are best suited. A teacher’s guide accompanies each assignment and exercise.
In addition, the Viking Ship Museum offers access to a free educational video about the Vikings and their ships. Students can take a virtual tour of the Viking Ship Hall and walk among the world-famous Viking ships through Google Street View. By exploring the museum, students will gain a sense of how ninth-century seafaring transformed the world!