The Museum of the Viking Age is scheduled to open in 2026. When it opens, it will hold over 8,000 artifacts from the Viking Age, including the Oseberg Ship. Asgard Alaska was able to interview the Museum of the Viking Age’s Communications Advisor Mari Parelius Wammer by correspondence.
Is the Oseberg Ship available for viewing while the Museum of the Viking Age is being built?
No, unfortunately not. The Viking ships are too fragile to be moved, so they are safely protected in the old museum building while we are building the expansion. This video explains it quite well:
What makes the Oseberg Ship special among archeological finds?
It is the best-preserved Viking ship in the world. 90% of the ship is original wood. It was an extremely rich Viking grave for two women, and all the equipment still preserved in the grave has given us unique insight into this time period.
Why is it important to learn about the Viking Age?
In the Viking Age, people from Scandinavia traveled out into the world in numbers! They plundered, traded, fought, discovered and conquered new lands, built farms, and founded cities. It is a quite short period in our history (approx. 750-1050), but it had a huge influence/impact on the rest of Europe and even beyond European borders.
What three other places should a Viking enthusiast visit when they are in your area?
Since the Museum of the Viking Age will be closed for a few years, I highly recommend a visit to the Historical Museum in Oslo. The exhibition VIKINGR contains some of the most exquisite objects that we have from the Norwegian Viking Age – objects that will later be on display in the Museum of the Viking Age.
For more Viking related experiences in the Oslo-area, see:
https://vestfoldmuseene.no/midgard-vikingsenter/oslofjord-viking-trail
Not exactly in my area, but Lofotr in Lofoten, North of Norway is well worth a visit. Here you can experience the largest longhouse ever found and excavated, and you can sail/row a Viking ship (among other things). The scenery and surroundings are breathtaking.
Not exactly my area either, but if you want to experience life as a Viking, you should visit Gudvangen, western Norway. It is a Viking village, well worth a visit! [Ed. Note: Read our article on the Viking village at Gudvangen.]
