People, power, and hierarchy – The Viking King from Ladby

Guided tours for the youth educations at the Viking Museum Ladby.

Subjects: History, Religion and Danish
Target audience: Students in upper secondary education
Duration: 1 hour
Max. number of participants per course: 30 students with a minimum of 1 accompanying teacher.
Form: Guided tour of exhibitions, the landscape, and inside The Ladby King’s grave. Along the way, the students’ prior knowledge and questions are used in conversation with the museum’s teacher, and copies of The Ladby King’s burial gifts are used to bring the Viking Age to life.

The Viking Museum Ladby contains the unique piece of Danish history that nuances the narrative of the Viking Age and pushes to our prior knowledge of Denmark 1000 years ago. The Viking king’s grave at Ladby is a mystery, because the king in the burial mound is not found in preserved written sources – as far as we know. But by illuminating the find with knowledge from other archaeological and written sources, many possible interpretations of the past emerge.

The Ladby King’s story represents a concrete, place-based historical case that gives rise to both chronological, thematic, and source-critical reflections.

• What was Community identity 1000 years ago, and how was it expressed?
• Which human-, power, and hierarchical mechanisms were present in the Viking Age?
• How did law and duty unfold in a culture of violence marked by social and religious change?

Both the unique cultural history of a monarchy in the year 900 and the historical use the 1930s archaeological excavations of the Ladby ship represent. reflect central topics such as identity, democracy and interpretations of the past in history teachings, and not least contribute to students’ general education.

Price: 550 kr. per hour with the museum’s teachers. Free for institutions in Nyborg and Kerteminde municipalities.

Contact and booking

• Contact The Viking Museum Ladby by email [email protected]or on tel: 65321667

Practicalities

• Takes place primarily indoors in the museum’s exhibitions and The Ladby King’s burial mound, which is located 200 m from the museum.
• The museum is located on a 5 hectare open grass area with hills and valleys, trees and scrub, as well as an inlet and waterfront. There is plenty of space in the open air for play and fun before or after the course. Remember to dress for the weather.
• The area has numerous table and bench sets where packed lunches can be eaten.
• In the museum shop you can buy ice cream, soda, coffee / tea etc.