Viking Dragon ships with beautiful towering sails make an incredible icon. They were ships constructed with gigantic overlapping planks of sculpted timber from the forests of Norway. With a dragon head at one end and a serpentine spiral tail at the other, these enormous Longships with a huge colourful sail traveled the Baltic, North, Atlantic and Mediterranean seas.
Vikings were masters of wood, wind and wave and they were pioneers and feared raiders throughout Europe from 790 to 880 AD. They stand out because they were such supreme builders of ships and cities and were great traders, sailors, warriors, and artists. They were sometimes destructive in their sea travels especially in the search for treasure and gold in Europe.
The Viking Dragon Ship on the High Seas ready for battle
The Celts readily absorbed and adapted the ancient art of their Viking neighbours’. The interlacing and vegetal designs, dragons and biting animals were inspired and admired. This is a well known design of a Dragon Longship rendered in pencil and paint.
The Great and Gripping Beasts from Norse /Viking art and the distinctive styles of interlacing with animals can be found in other HOP Posts.
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