The boat builder
The boatbuilder is responsible for all the wood work. They select which trees to use, fell them and process them to fit what their needs.
At the bottom of the page you can see some pictures of the boatbuilder's work and in what order the ship is built.
The tradition
Denmark is, and always has been, a maritime nation and boatbuilding has ever been an essential industry in this country of islands and coastlines.
Boat building has always been an important job. Their experience and ability to choose the right materials is very important. If the tree they choose to use for the ship is not in suitable, it will destroy the entire ship. But their experience and abilities must also be used when building the ship. Everything must fit together and the ship must be able to stay afloat and sail straight.
The boatbuilders working at the Museum boatyard today carry this seafaring legacy forward: their work in building boats preserves this traditional craft and makes it possible for visitors to the Museum to both witness boatbuilding first-hand and experience what it’s like to sail a square-rigged, open boat.
Research
The reconstruction of archaeological ship finds is one of the most important parts of the Viking Ship Museum's research. We call this work "experimental archeology". Not because it is carried out by archaeologists, but because we experiment on what the ships may have looked like and how they have sailed.
The actual product, the reconstruction, can be compared to a historical production. It does not represent the truth of how the original or reality looked in every detail, but it does give a picture of what it might have looked like.
The many different building projects carried out at the boatyard vary greatly in their nature. The boatbuilders have undertaken everything from the reconstruction of a 30m long Viking Age warship to expanded log boats and traditional fishing craft. Each project represents a multi-disciplinary effort: the boatbuilders don’t work in isolation but instead collaborate with ship reconstructors, maritime archaeologists and other experts, and each construction project is thoroughly documented and recorded, with a view to publication and further research.
The team
The boatbuilding team at the Museum includes some of Denmark’s most experienced traditional clinker-built wooden boat builders. The boatbuilding environment at the Museum is also something quite unique. It is one of the few remaining boatyards that still builds exclusively in wood. Over the years, this has allowed the team to hone their skills and perfect their craft. Their collective experience and understanding of the techniques, materials and tool-use required when building wooden boats, combined with the multi-disciplinary dimension involved in reconstructing archaeological ship finds has given rise to a craftworking environment where boatbuilding is set firmly in focus, and the knowledge accrued over the years is brought to bear on each new project.
The boatyard is also quite unusual in that it is open to the public, all year round. The boatbuilders work in full view of the Museum’s guests and a large part of their work involves answering questions from curious visitors. This dialogue is a key element of the boatyard’s goal in ensuring the survival of their craft in the years to come. In order for any craft tradition to endure, it must be a living one, and being able to watch over the boatbuilders’ shoulders as they cleave timber, drill holes and coat hulls with tar provides a direct, sensory learning experience which leaves a lasting impression on many of the boatyard’s visitors.
