longship
Viking warship, probably developed in the 8th century. Longships were manoeuvrable and fast, well designed for raiding coastal settlements. They could carry 60 or more warriors and travelled under sail or by rowing. There were up to 30 rowing benches in standard longships (the ‘great ships’ of the late Viking Age had even more). The length-to-breadth ratio of the longship is greater than 6:1 (11.4:1 in one case) enabling them to cut swiftly through the water. Speed was further enhanced by lightness; the timbers of the shell were planed to a width of only 2 cm/0.8 in.
In 1997 Danish archaeologists discovered a longship dating from AD 1025, in the mud of Roskilde harbour. At 35 m/115 ft, it is the longest discovered so far.
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