Rivets and nails

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These iron boat rivets were found in a man's grave at Kiloran Bay on Colonsay in the Inner Hebrides. He was buried in a boat between 875 and 925 with a range of Scandinavian weapons, tools and a pin, together with his horse.

Around 130 nails, rivets and fragments were recovered in the late 19th century excavations at Kiloran Bay. They are the types used in boat building, and provide the sole evidence that the body was placed in or under a boat, since all wood had decayed.

Pagan burials in stone boat settings or wooden boats are known from Scandinavia. From Scotland there are fewer examples: four clear cases and several ambiguous ones. The rivets used in boat making were distinctive.

Record details

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• Online ID: 000-000-099-688-C
• Image Rights Holder: National Museums Scotland
• Project: Kiloran Bay Viking Burial (multimedia essay)
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• Ref: National Museums Scotland  
• Date: Between 875 and 925
  
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• References:
  • Graham-Campbell, James and Batey, Colleen E. Vikings in Scotland. An Archaeological Survey. Edinburgh: University Press, 1998, pp 118-22. 
  • Grieg, Sigurd. Viking Antiquities in Scotland (=Viking Antiquities in Great Britain and Ireland, Part II, ed. by Haakon Shetelig). Oslo: H. Aschehoug & Co., 1940, pp 48-61, esp. pp 52, 54. 
  • Ritchie, Anna. Viking Scotland London: B.T. Batsford Ltd/Historic Scotland, 1993, pp 79-84.
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