The above drawings were scanned off the plans of the Gokstad Viking ship. Although a bit rugged for the wear and tear of file compression, this gives the viewer an idea of the unique solution these people had for a rudder. For detailed Viking shipbuilding methods refer to the link 'Viking Ship Construction' on the contents bar.

Following is an excerpt of this outstanding, but unfortunately out-of-print book.

'Finally we come to the rudder, one of the most important parts of the ship, and one which well deserves closer examination. To the modern eye the Gokstad ship is furnished with a very curious arrangement for steering. The rudder itself is shaped like an oversized oar-blade, hanging outside to starboard, aft. It is cut front one piece of oak, 10' 8 3/4" (3.30 m.) high and 16 1/2" (42 cm.) wide, with a slightly out-curving heel at the lower cud. Fundamentally it is thus a very large steering-oar. Originally, the rudder must have been just an oar, held against the side of the ship, as is done in small boats today, but with larger vessels such a rudder gets too heavy for one man to handle and keep in the correct position when the ship is under way. It must have been a very complicated problem to fasten the rudder so that it would cleave the water at a suitable depth, turn on its own axis and resist the pressure of heavy seas. We have seen how imperfectly this was arranged even at the time of the Nydam ship. In the Viking ships a satisfactory solution bas finally been found, the rudder being attached to the last rib aft, which is especially shaped for this purpose.'

You will find additional pages on this site containing useful information on the 76' 6" Viking Ship Gokstad through the Contents bar. If you are interested in purchasing a complete set of building plans for the 9th century Viking ship visit our HOME page for details.

If you have an interest in service and the philosophy of nonprofits towards helping others visit our central Web site for information on MeriSol Services, Inc.