“He (Thorleif) took passage in the summer with the traders, who prepared to go from Straumfjord, and was with the steersmen. It was then the custom of traders not to have cooks, but the messmates drew lots to see which of them should do the cooking day by day. All shipmates also had to drink together, and a tub with a lid over it stood near the mast for this purpose, but some drank from the casks which supplied the tub” (Eyrbyggja Saga, c. 39).
Fig. 932.—Dragon.—Length, 10 to 12 feet; width between the wings, 3 feet.
The people, and especially the chiefs, took great pride in the appearance of their ships, both in regard to ornamentation and sails, and kept them well painted. We may form an idea of the labour bestowed on their embellishment, from the carved pieces of wood found on board of the Gokstad ship;[[135]] what, then, must it have been on such ships as the long serpent and others mentioned in the Sagas?
Insignificant objects are adorned with exquisite and tasteful designs. Some of them seem to have been designed without the aid of mechanical appliances, and others before being engraved must have had their drawings traced with compasses, &c.
The dragons were gilt, both on the stem and stern, or covered with thin sheets of gold, thus presenting a magnificent appearance as they sailed with the sun shining upon them. These and other ornaments which were placed on a ship were not fixed on till it had left the rollers and was in the water.
“Olaf had a ship made in the winter, called Visund (the bison-ox), which was larger than any other. On its prow there was the head of a bison, gilt” (St. Olaf, c. 154).
“King Olaf had a ship called Karlhöfdi (man’s head); on its prow was a king’s head, which he himself had carved. That head was for a long time afterwards used in Norway on ships steered by chiefs” (St. Olaf, c. 45).
“Rand had a large dragon, with a gold-ornamented head, which had thirty large rooms” (Olaf Tryggvason’s Saga, c. 85).[[136]]
On the top of the belfry (clock-tower) in Ghent is found the figure of a dragon, of which a woodcut is here given (p. 152). It consists of gilded copper-plates, nailed on a kind of iron skeleton. The back between the wings is open.[[137]]