|
Viking Ship, the Karv, AD 900
We have several sizes of limited edition Giclées on paper and canvas available for retail, wholesale and bulk discounts. Please use the Contact Form and ask for our latest Price List. |
The rugged and serviceable Viking Ship, the Karv, off the east coast of North America on a dark, stormy afternoon about AD 900. Reference was supplied by the Maritime Museum in Victoria and the Vancouver Central Library. While it is generally accepted that the Vikings visited North America (Vinland) in larger boats called knarrs, which were beamier and deeper that the karv, I chose to portray the karv. To me it is such a beautiful boat and, anyway, it probably visited North America during the same period. The Oseberg ship was a karv. She was discovered in 1903 on the western side of the Oslo Fjord. It was the custom of the Vikings to use ships as tombs and, for this reason, much is known of these ships. The Oseberg ship was propelled mainly by a large, single sail, while oars were used for inshore navigation. These ships had great strength. Their clinker-built hulls were made from oak planks and the gunwales of beech. The Vikings achieved great skills in seafaring and it is said that the quality of their ships and the scope of their navigation were unmatched until the Age of Discovery, some four hundred years later. |