A Friend in Need is a Friend Indeed

This old saying is well suited to describe how well the collaboration between the Viking communities in Sandefjord and Tønsberg works. Recently, the Gaia Boat Guild received a gift from Oseberg Viking Heritage — a gift that was met with great joy.

Text: Einar Chr. Erlingsen

Here’s the story behind the gift: This summer, Gaia was sailing from Stavern towards Nevlunghavn when the weather turned rough, with heavy seas. Suddenly, skipper Tor Edvard Løberg saw the ship’s proud dragon head break off and disappear into the waves. Turning around to search was out of the question due to the conditions. Later, they searched the beaches and even posted appeals on Facebook, but without success. That’s when Oseberg Viking Heritage’s Sandefjord department head, Roger Pande Løvall, stepped in.

“Gaia definitely looked a bit incomplete without her dragon head, so we decided to give our ‘colleagues’ on Gaia a helping hand. After all, we’re already working together on building Gaia’s successor – the archaeological replica of the Gokstad ship that’s currently under construction in Sandefjord and Tønsberg.”

With access to the archives at the Historical Museum, Roger was able to obtain the drawings he needed to begin the work. Since no original dragon head was found during the Gokstad ship excavation, he based his design on one of the intricately carved tent poles from the Gokstad find.

To make a long story short: Saga Oseberg’s arrival at Sandefjord’s Cultural Night on September 6 was announced with the blast of a lur horn. The new dragon head was then ceremoniously carried ashore and
presented as a gift to Gaia’s skipper, who could finally mount it on the ship’s bow.

“It’s a fantastic piece of work, and we’re so happy to have a proper bow on Gaia again,” Tor
Edvard Løberg told Sandefjords Blad after the presentation. “It’s great to have a dragon head we can proudly display, bringing back the ‘dragon-like’ look she’s meant to have.”

Gaia’s skipper, Tor Edvard Løberg, proudly lifts his ship’s new figurehead. On the right,
Oseberg Viking Heritage’s Roger Pande Løvall. (Photo: Steinar Hvitstein)