Norway Lends Historic 10-Meter Viking Boat to Danish Museum

Culture lovers in Denmark can soon see a rare Viking ship. Norway is lending a 10-meter oak Viking boat to Moesgaard Museum. The museum is located near Aarhus. This is an unusual 10-year loan agreement. CPH Post reported the news.

The boat is almost 10 meters long. It is nearly two meters wide. Archaeologists discovered it in 1880. It was inside Norway's Gokstad ship excavation. The Gokstad ship is Norway's largest preserved Viking vessel.

Archaeologists found three smaller boats chopped into pieces. This was likely part of an ancient burial ritual. Norway's Museum of Cultural History owns the boat. It applied for permission to lend it to Denmark for a new exhibition.

Norway rarely allows cultural treasures to leave the country. Loans usually last only three years. The Danish museum must send condition reports every three years. No arrival date has been announced yet.

Moesgaard Museum already displays a 6.5-meter Gokstad boat. That smaller boat transported ship crews and orders. The new boat will add to this historic collection.