The technological precondition that the Viking Period could come to be in the widest sense was the ship. Through thousands of years of sailing, wrecking, research and steady improvement the Northmen had created the viking ship. - the period's  best and most perfected vessel. They could outsail all other seafaring peoples, overhaul them, outdistance them, and sail closer to  the wind  than any skipper had previously dreamt was possible. The ship was seaworthy, manouvreable, flexible, solid and, despite its size and strength had so  shallow a draught that it could navigate narrow creeks and rivers. It was just as good on inland waters as on the high seas.

The vessel was capable of any task., be it trading trips, piracy or coastal raiding. And one thing more - despite all the dramatic legends about warriors the crucial keystone to the Viking Period and the past is that viking ships allowed the great  migration , that stream of humanity which flowed overseas . Not  merely travel seeking silver and slaves but a mission after new homes and new land.