OSLO, NORWAY—Life in Norway reports that the completed georadar survey of Edoya Island, which is located off the coast of western Norway, has revealed a second Viking ship burial. The first ship burial, now known as the Edoya ship, was detected on the small island last fall. Manuel Gabler of the Norwegian Institute for Cultural Heritage Research (NIKU) said the data indicates an object about 24 feet long and three feet wide had been placed inside a circular structure thought to be a round stone cairn. NIKU researcher Knut Paasche added that the long object probably represents the bottom of the boat, and the full vessel would have been long enough to have been propelled by four pairs of oars. The survey also detected a round anomaly in the soil that may have been a burial mound that has been plowed over, two more possible graves, and what could be traces of two houses. “The houses that have been traced may well be from the older Iron Age, circa A.D. 300 to 600,” explained county conservator Bjørn Ringstad. “The tombs may be from the younger Iron Age, circa A.D. 600 to 900. The findings nevertheless show that there was a close connection between the residences and the burial ground at Edoya.” The presence of ship burials suggests the island was a seat of Viking power, Paasche added. For more on the first Edoya ship burial, go to "Sailing the Viking Seas."
