Knarr

Knarr (Old Norse: knarr; Old English: cnearr, cnear; Old High German: gnarren) were the Norse merchant and cargo ships of the Viking Age, used by Vikings for long sea voyages and during the Viking expansion. While the name etymologically suggests that it was used as a warship at times, the types from the latter half of the Viking Age were built as work boats for handling cargo; the hull of a common knarr was wider, deeper and shorter than a longship, and could take more cargo and be operated by smaller crews. The knarr was primarily used to transport trading goods like walrus ivory, wool, timber, wheat, furs and pelts, armour, slaves, honey, and weapons. It was also used to supply food, drink, weapons and armour to warriors and traders along their journeys across the Baltic, the Mediterranean and other seas. Knarrs routinely crossed the North Atlantic carrying livestock such as sheep and horses, and stores to Norse settlements in Iceland, Greenland and Vinland as well as trading goods to trading posts in the British Isles, Continental Europe and possibly the Middle East. The knarr was constructed using the same clinker-built method as longships, karves, and faerings.