Autumn of the Vikings
12 - 20 October 2024
Autumn is upon us. The days are getting shorter, the leaves are fading and the forest is ablaze with beautiful red and yellow colours. We move indoors, light candles and cosy up in our living rooms.
In Viking times, autumn was also a time of closeness. Warriors came home from expeditions and the joy of reunion was great after several months at sea. For some, there was also the disappointment and loss that not everyone made it home. The boats, clothes and minds had to be repaired, and the harvest had to be harvested before the winter darkness came. Families gathered around the fire, where they worked on crafts and told stories about summer expeditions, gods and heroes. Here they could feel each other, regain the courage and hope that could carry them through the long darkness of winter.
Autumn holidays at the Viking Ship Museum
During the autumn holidays, we celebrate the transition between the bright summer and the dark winter, between life and death.
We gather around the fire to tell stories about the Viking gods, meet in the tent to card yarn and spin noren threads, give life to both small model boats and large Viking ships in the shipyard and immerse ourselves in the past in the Maritime Archaeologists' DocuLab and in the Viking Ship Hall.
There's plenty to experience - you can explore all the autumn holiday activities.
Tyrs lost courage
Take part in the guided family tour 'Tyrs lost courage'.
Takes place on the Beach Meadow at 14:30.
Stories about the gods and the norns
Do you know the gods and norns from Norse mythology?
11:00 and 15:00 in Danish and 13:30 in English every day during the autumn holidays.
Spin norn threads and bake Birkakiks
The beach meadow is transformed into a living Viking camp with bonfires, a storytelling tent and a training area. Here you can practice your Viking skills: learn to throw a mooring rope, fight like a Viking with a sword, or test your family's strength in a game of tug-of-war.
At the bonfires we bake Birkakiks, a recipe for Viking biscuits recreated from the remains of charred bread found at a trading post in Birka, close to Stockholm.
Dive into the art of boatbuilding
On the Museum Island you can learn more about how the magnificent boats are created. See how maritime archaeologists investigate and document the ship finds Svælget 1 and 2 from Copenhagen Harbour in the Maritime Archaeologists' Doculab. The maritime archaeologists' examinations form the basis for how boat builders build reconstructions of the 1000-year-old ships from the Viking Ship Hall. You are very welcome to ask about their work, tools and choice of materials, or any other questions you may have.
The Build Boat workshop at the shipyard is where children and creative souls can build a model boat and then see how seaworthy their boat is in the water tank next to the workshop.
Play and learn in the Viking Ship Hall
After playing outside in the cool autumn breeze, seek shelter and warmth in the Viking Ship Hall, where you can immerse yourself in the discoveries of the past. Both children and adults can be entertained by the history and the beautiful ships that were sunk 1000 years ago not far from their current home. The ships can be experienced from the signs alone, with stories from the museum's guides on one of the two daily tours, or via one of the three audio tracks in the Useeum app. There are audio tracks for children, adults and those who want more specialised information from the museum's researchers and craftsmen. For the cunning and clever children, there is also the Museum Mystery, where you must try to stop the Master Thief Heidenreich's sinister plans to steal something quite priceless from the Viking Ship Museum.
In addition, the museum has opened a new room in the lower floor of the Viking Ship Hall, designed for the youngest museum visitors. In the Children's Hamlet, all kinds of crafts, role-playing games and fairytale stories can unfold. Pack a chest for the merchant, tuck the wooden dolls into a goatskin duvet or cook a feast over the fireplace for those returning from the conquest.
