New Building Projects at the Viking Ship Museum


Ever since the Viking Ship Museum was first planned, in the 1960s, there has been an idea in the background that in due course it should grow and take in new ship-finds and other activities as the opportunity arose. In 1994 the museum celebrated the 25th anniversary of its inauguration, and the time has now come to write a new chapter in its history.

At the end of February this year the sum of DKK 50.8 million was donated by Arbejdsmarkedets Feriefond (lit. transl: the 'Labour market's Holiday fund') for the extension of the educational activities of the Viking Ship Museum. Along with contributions already offered from other sources (the Velux Foundation of 1981, the Ministry of Culture, Roskilde municipality and Roskilde county), this constitutes an economic foundation for carrying out the first phase of the museum extension; it is expected that the construction-work will begin in the spring of 1995. The extension of the Viking Ship Museum will be an element in the redevelopment of the harbour-area in Roskilde and will aim at utilising to the full the cultural and recreational potential of the area.

The extension of the Viking Ship Museum will take place in two phases. Phase 1 concerns the area to the west of the present museum-building; there the museum's many activities which are now carried out all along the harbour front will be collected and will develop in a totally new context. Phase 2 will consist of a new museum-building to the south and east of the present one, containing displays of ships from prehistoric and medieval times, etc.

The heaps of earth which will greet the visitors to the Viking Ship Museum in the summer season of 1995 will be the result of work on phase 1, which is described briefly below.

The museum island

Today the museum's boatyard is situated a good distance from the museum itself, so the museum's boat-collection and the many activities in the boatyard, such as sailing trips with school-children and tourists, are not experienced by other visitors as an integrated part of the museum's programme. Moving the boatyard to the area between Roskilde harbour and the museum, as well as constructing a museum harbour in this area (see cover no. 1), will radically change this situation. The new buildings in this area will be boat-building halls and educational buildings for the museum's schools service and all the functions connected with sailing for schools, holiday-trips, courses, etc., along with premises for boat-guilds, reception of finds and storage of timber and boats.

With this arrangement of the museum island, when visitors cross the bridge from the parking-area they will find themselves in an unusually attractive maritime environment. The daily functions in the area - the many historical boats, the building of new replicas, and the preparation of vessels in the boatyard, sailing-trips with school-children, tourists and other groups - will be an experience in themselves. But in addition the area will lend itself to a series of special activities. It will be possible to set up a ropewalk so that the production of ropes for the museum's ships can be watched. It is intended to set up Viking Markets on the island and on the green areas around the museum, and replicas of the Viking ships and of other vessels will be built outdoors at the boatyard. In this connection it should be mentioned that in the grant from Arbejdsmarkedets Feriefond there are funds set aside for the building of two new Viking-ship replicas, Skuldelev 6, the fishing boat and Skuldelev 1, the sea-going ship.

When visitors have walked past the activities on the island, they will be able to survey the whole ship-collection from the bridge over the museum harbour.

The Maritime Activity Centre

The Maritime Activity Centre (no. 2) will include the following components: The School for Maritime Culture: In January 1994 the Viking Ship Museum, in cooperation with the Nature School, started a new educational institution - the School for Maritime Culture -which offers young people a 2-year course in Maritime Culture. The direct purpose of this course is to equip students to pass on to others knowledge about craft traditions and other subjects related to Nordic maritime culture, and to convey experiences and inspiration derived from it.

Advanced training for boat-builders. The specialised crafts needed for building wooden ships such as those built in the Viking Ship Museum's shipyard are not to be found anywhere else in Denmark. There is therefore a plan to start a series of courses under the heading 'The Nordic Boat'. With the boat as departure-point the subjects covered would not only include boat-building, but also sail-making, rope-making, forging, navigation, sailing, surveying and history - all subjects which would lead to greater understanding of the individual boat's construction. The courses would primarily be seen as further training for qualified boat-builders/ships' carpenters or others with experience within this subject-area.

International cooperation. In a number of European countries work is being done to preserve traditional boat-building practices through building and sailing with replicas of old boats, often with museums as the point of departure. There is a deeply-felt need to initiate exchanges between different countries so that boat-builders and boat-building apprentices can profit from experience of different traditions.

Maritime holiday centre. The idea of programmes of activities provided as a service to holiday-makers with an interest in the maritime area and in the Viking Age is a natural development of the Viking Ship Museum's present activities. Sailing trips in boats from the museum's boat-collection and courses in different maritime crafts will be the main elements offered. In connection with the extension of the museum, Roskilde municipality has decided to build a new youth hostel (no.3) adjacent to the Maritime Activity Centre. This will create ideal conditions for users of the centre.

Restaurant and offices

A restaurant will be situated in the building (no. 4) just beside the central pathway which will lead from the parking area to the museum island; it will have a view over the harbour and canals where the old ships will be moored. The floor above the restaurant will provide office space for research and administration.

Medieval Ship Hall

While the first part of the extension to the Viking Ship Museum, described above, has now been secured in terms of planning and finance, the prospects for Phase 2 - the new exhibition building - are rather more long-term. The form suggested on the overall plan (no. 5) is only a sketch to show the siting of the proposed building. Decisions as to its final form have been put in the hands of the well-known Danish architect Henning Larsen, who has been asked to plan the shape of the new museum building with respect for the Viking Ship Museum's distinct architectural profile.

Jan Skamby Madsen


Jorn.Sjostrom@natmus.min.dk
Copyright © 1995 The National Museum of Denmark
Last Updated august 6, 1995