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Where Is the Legendary Vinland?

By Awake! correspondent in Canada

THE land had self-sown wheat, salmon-filled streams, wild “wine berries” (cranberries), and frost-free winters. By the standards of a millennium ago, this was paradise. The account of 36 courageous men who made a journey there formed the basis for a 20th-century investigation into the location of the place where Europeans may have first set foot in North America.

Sometime between 990 and 1000 C.E., Viking Leif Eriksson and his men began their 1,500-mile [2,000 km] journey of exploration. Sailing northward along the west coast of Greenland and then turning west, Eriksson came upon two land areas, which he named Helluland and Markland. Today they are identified with Baffin Island and Labrador. The third landing of the party became a mystery—where is the legendary Vinland?

In 1959, archaeologists Helge Ingstad and his wife, Anne Stine Ingstad, began the search. They had at hand little more than the clues in the ancient records of the Norsemen, called the Icelandic sagas, which contain a blend of truth and fiction. The couple’s travels took them thousands of miles by sea, land, and air, up and down the eastern seaboard of North America. Finally they were rewarded when they stumbled across the small community of L’Anse aux Meadows, on the northern peninsula of Newfoundland island. There a local resident, George Decker, led them to an area that had what appeared to be overgrown ruins of homes.

Seven years of archaeological digging seemed to establish the history of the site and captured world attention. Significantly, the Ingstads unearthed eight turf-walled buildings and a bronze pin used to fasten a garment. All of these bore the stamp of Viking origin. One of the most crucial discoveries was a small furnace used to smelt iron. The remaining slag was dated to the time recorded in the sagas for Eriksson’s arrival in the New World. The evidence, finally in, appeared to testify to a Viking presence in North America.

The place we now know as L’Anse aux Meadows does not truly match the legendary description of Vinland. We will probably never be able to pinpoint the exact location of that land with certainty. It seems, however, that while the Vikings may not have been the first to set foot in North America, their arrival was about 500 years in advance of Columbus.

Today you may visit the site and get a glimpse into the ways of the Vikings. Reconstructed sod homes and a replica of a Viking ship in which Eriksson might have sailed his epic voyage can be seen. Historical interpreters in period apparel may provide the stimulus to take you back a thousand years and help you to envision yourself living the Viking life.

[Map on page 12]

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GREENLAND

BAFFIN ISLAND

LABRADOR

NEWFOUNDLAND

L’ANSE AUX MEADOWS

[Picture on page 12]

The “Snorri,” a 54-foot replica of a Viking merchant ship known as a “knarr”

[Credit Line]

Nordfoto/Carl D. Walsh

[Picture on page 12, 13]

Reconstructed sod homes at L’Anse aux Meadows

[Credit Line]

L’Anse aux Meadows National Historic Site/UNESCO World Heritage Site

[Picture on page 13]

Leif Eriksson