In the Hjortspring find, many different parts were found that could not be attributed to being part of the boat or its armament, but probably as tools for use in the boat.
We have made copies of some of these. These parts are labelled with museum numbers, such as #558 (blowpipe).
A more detailed description of some of the parts can be found in the section: Hjortspringfundet.
Tools
Photo: Ib Stolberg-Rohr.
Photo: Ib Stolberg-Rohr.
Made from a strong forked branch and drilled out. The length is 530 mm and the two branches in the split are 80 mm long. The diameter at the split end is 70 mm, the hole Ø45 mm. At the mouth end there is a 28 mm long protrusion of Ø48 mm from Ø55 mm, the hole is Ø30 mm. It is assumed that the beads at the end of the cleft were used to hold the skin bags to a bellows and the depression at the other end was enclosed by a clay gasket to protect the wooden mouth from excessive heat from the hearth.
The bellows consists of all the wooden parts seen in the bottom image. The hinges and counter-valves are made of leather, as are the bellows themselves, glued to the plates with resin glue and secured with thin strips split from hazel branches, fastened with thin wooden pegs all round.
The four iron bars are intended to secure the bellows to the ground. They go down at an angle.
Photo: Knud Andersen.
This article was put together by Ib Stolberg-Rohr, feel free to write if you have any comments.
Notes and references
1. G. Rosenberg, Fig. 37, p. 64, tekst, p. 67