The (re)construction of the Viking houses at Haithabu is based on the results of over 100 years of research at this site. The conservation of organic material allows detailed conclusions about the looks of the houses back then.
The houses were constructed over the years 2005 – 2008 together with a land bridge on a surface of 2,722 square metres with the help of local construction firms following archaeological research. For the interior of the houses, it is less emphasised to offer an exact copy of the original design; it is more, by using examples, about showing different parts of the life in an early town. As themes for the individual buildings aspects were selected which are well documented in Haithabu by the extensive excavations. These themes are under research at certain times using experimental archaeology when our knowledge is enlarged and shared with the public.
In 2018 the United Nations World Heritage Committee incorporated the Danewerk border building and the Viking Age trading venue Haithabu in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
The Wikinger Museum Haithabu presents one of the most modern archaeological exhibitions in Europe. The visitor is taken on a journey to the early city life of 1,000 years ago using unique original finds and innovative media. In this context one will find the seven (re)constructed houses at the historical site of Haithabu in the role of explanatory models in true scale in which the visitors can immerge using all their senses. The construction of the houses has already followed the phrase "the road is the goal" when they were built in front of the eyes of the visitors as presentation of early medieval constructional techniques. Already since 1995 in the outdoor area of the Viking Museum Haithabu activities with experimental character took place, spatter being moved to the (re)constructed houses. Nowadays different crafts are being presented regularly, for the information for the visitors.
