The Islendigur Ship

The year 2000 is an important one for Scandinavians, and for all those interested in Vikings. It marks the millennial anniversary of Leif Eiriksson's voyage to the New World, in which he reached as far as Newfoundland, almost a full 500 years before Columbus. Festivals around the world are celebrating this astounding and under-recognized achievement.

On October 5th, the Vikings will land at New York City's South Street Seaport when the Islendingur, meaning "Icelander," sails into New York Harbor. The ship is an exact replica of a 9th century Viking vessel and set sail from Reykjavik, Iceland on June 17th to retrace the 2,600 mile voyage.

The ship and its commemorative voyage were the ideas of captain Gunnar Marel Eggertsson, an Icelandic shipbuilder and direct descendant of Leif Eiriksson. Designed and built by Eggertsson himself, it is a stable, solid ship made of oak and pine, measuring 73 feet long and weighing 80 tons.

Besides Captain Eggertsson, there are 8 crew members on board including one woman. In Viking times, a similar ship would have a crew of about 70, with alternating shifts of 32 oarsmen. The inclusion of a woman in the crew is not at all anachronistic, for women have always played an important role in Viking society. In fact, the widow of Leif's brother, Gudridur Thorbjarnardottir, was one of the leaders of the third Viking expedition to North America, and mother of the first European child born in the New World.

The Islendingur sails to the 79th Street Boat Basin on October 18th, and completes its voyage on October 23rd 2001.

Many artifacts were left behind by the Vikings, particularly at the site of L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland, some of which prove the Vikings had a relationship with Native Americans. Many of these artifacts have been incorporated into the exhibit Vikings: The North Atlantic Saga, which opens at the Museum on October 21st and runs through January, 2001.