Knarr

The knarr is a Scandinavian cargo ship of the Viking Age, built broader, deeper and with more freeboard than the narrower longships used primarily for raiding and warfare, and relying mainly on sail rather than the large rowing crews longships carried. Built for open-ocean trade and transport rather than speed or maneuverability in coastal raiding, the knarr was the vessel type most closely associated with Norse long-distance voyages of exploration and colonization, including the settlement of Iceland and Greenland and voyages toward North America, since its cargo capacity and seaworthiness suited it to carrying settlers, livestock and provisions across open water. Archaeological finds of well-preserved knarr wrecks, together with replica vessels built and sailed by modern researchers, have been central to reconstructing how Viking Age long-distance trade and exploration voyages were actually carried out.