Viking shipyard found at Birka World Heritage Site in Sweden
In what archaeologists have described as the “first of its kind”, remains of a shipyard from the Viking Age have been discovered on a Swedish island known for its strong Nordic history.
“A place like this has never been found before,” says archeology professor Sven Isaksson in a press release from University of Stockholm. “It is the first of its kind, but the findings convincingly show that it was a lap.”
A Viking center of power
Birka is located on relaxed Björkö in Lake Mälaren just west of Stockholm. Nickname Vikingastaden (Vikingastaden) in Swedish, Birka was one of the most important Viking trading places we know today.
So important is Birka, the UNESCO-awarded World Heritage status 1993 and said that it “bears exceptionally well-preserved testimony to the extensive trade network established by the Vikings during the two centuries of their phenomenal economic and political expansion.”
A statement about official Birka website the reading “there are many ancient monuments – and still much to discover” proved to be foresighted as the remains of jetties, boat launches and related tools have now been discovered in an area of the coastline.
A workshop for seafaring Vikings
Archaeologists discovered a rocky depression in the shoreline with a wooden boat slip, a large amount of boat rivets, slate edges and various woodworking tools.
The surveys have been carried out by Stockholm University based on surveys with GNSS receivers and drones, geochemical mapping and excavation of four ditches.
Given Birka’s island location and importance as a trading place, it is no wonder that boats were built on the island. Vikings went as far as Greenland and North America, of course.
But finding the remains of a shipyard is still an exciting discovery that sheds further light on how Birka worked and the shipbuilding methods used by the Norwegians.
– Through systematic inventory, mapping and drone surveys, we can now show that Birka, in addition to the urban environment, also has a very rich maritime cultural landscape with remnants of everything from jetties to launches and shipyards, says Isaksson.
Viking age tourism at Birka
While surveys continue in other parts of Birka and Björkö, the place is still open as a tourist attraction. Day trips by boat from Stockholm that include a guided tour in Birka are popular.
Attractions include a museum showing possible stories of four different people found in graves at Birka and a Viking village complete with reconstructed houses, arts and crafts and actors playing roles as northerners.