Viking Ships and Cultural Enrichment
While there is no record of Viking ships having visited
Australia, vessels of the tradition exemplified by Gokstad are part of
the heritage of most of the peoples who make up the contemporary Australian
population. These include the English, Irish, Scottish, Welsh, Icelanders,
Danes, Norwegians, Swedes, Finns, Estonians, Latvians, Lithuanians, Russians,
Poles, the Dutch, Germans, Belgians, French, Portuguese, Spanish, Italians,
Ukrainians and Greeks, as well as the Canadians and Americans.
The Australian Gokstad replica, and the museum of which
it is part, will help all members of the Australian community to learn
and understand more about the deeper roots of (an aspect of) our
multicultural Australian heritage. It will also equip them to interpret
this heritage in terms of science, technology, human behaviour, history,
art, economics and - of course - culture.
The map below shows the main trading routes used by ships
like Gokstad during the Viking period:
Some comments on the AVSM's Gokstad
replica project:
I shall be very pleased to provide a statement of
endorsement for the project to build a replica of the Gokstad longship
Professor Jarlath Ronayne, President of Victoria University and Honorary
Consul, Consulate or Ireland
Your project to build a replica of the Gokstad Viking
longship sounds extremely interesting and I would be very happy in principle
to lend my support
A. D. Sprake, British Consul-General, Melbourne
I was delighted to receive your letter ... in which
you announced ... your intention to build a replica of the Gokstad Viking
Longship. The Consulate General extends its support and endorsement
for this very exciting project and we hope that you will keep us informed
of your ambitious project
Jan Raynholt, Royal Danish Consulate General
I would be very pleased to be involved with the Australian
Viking Ships Museum in view of the importance of the Gokstad Viking
longships and the trade with Spain during the Viking era
Federico Palomera Guez, Consul General of Spain
The Finnish Society of Melbourne inc. would like
to congratulate you on your initiative. The Australian Viking Ships
Museum would be of great interest to all Australians
Anneli Rickards, Secretary, Finnish Society of Melbourne
This undertaking is ... a significant project and
I send you my best wishes on successfully completing your project
Andrew Zilinskas, Honorary Consul, Consulate of the Republic of
Lithuania
This project will undoubtedly prove to be an important
contribution to the understanding of Viking boat building traditions
and history and will attract great interest amongst multicultural Australians
Francesco Calogero, Consul General of Italy in Melbourne
Thank you for your letter ... regarding the planned
construction of a Viking longship. This is indeed a grand idea and no
doubt going to be very costly. I wish you all the best with the project
Inga Arnadottir, Honorary Consul-General of Iceland
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