The story starts in the 9th Century, during the reign of King Harald Fairhair, when a Viking chief was buried in a ship at Gokstad in Norway. In 1880 the sons of the farmer whose land the burial mound was situated excavated the mound and discovered the ship. A photo of excavation is the first image above. It now resides at the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo, Norway (second image).

In May 1893, an exact replica was built and sailed from Sandefjord, Norway, to Bergen and onward to Chicago for the Columbian Exposition. A photo of the ship leaving Kongshavn in April 1893 is the third image above. The ship was a star attraction at the exhibition, and a souvenir photo is shown on the fourth image. The source photograph used for the vignette came from the Expo's guidebook, shown in the fifth image.

The replica ship was restored by 'Friends of the Viking Ship' located in Geneva, Illinois, at Good Templar Park (last image). At the time of writing, the ship is looking for a permanent home.