THE VIKINGS 

 For the Vikings who lived by raiding and trading, sturdy ships were a necessity.
The ship on the stocks has been modelled on an 11th century Viking ship found
at Roskilde, Denmark, which was built in Ireland around 1060 AD.

From Norway, the Vikings had come to
Ireland at the end of the 8th century,
first for plunder, but later for trade and commerce.

Soon they began to stay in Ireland
during the winter. This meant setting
up some sort of fortification to protect
themselves and their ships. 

The settlement would have been
surrounded by a wall and ditch.
These gradually grew into bigger
establishments, where trade was
carried on. 

Slaves, wine, delicacies like figs and
olives, and other luxury goods changed
hands in return for the cowhides and products of Irish agriculture. In this way the first
Irish towns, including Wexford, Waterford, Dublin and Limerick were established.

The house reconstruction in the Irish National Heritage Park is based on one found in
excavations in Wexford. They were rectangular, with post and wattle walls and a
hipped roof. Inside, a central aisle ran from front to back, with seating/sleeping areas
on either side, and a hearth in the middle. There was no chimney, but there was a
smoke hole in the ridge.