Visit Date: 15 March 2008
Admission Price: At time of visit, the charges were as follow:
Adult - £8.50
Ages 5-15 - £4.00
Concessions - £7.00
Please check to see whether these charges have since been revised.
Ownership: York Archaeological Trust
Tel. Number: 01904 543400
Website: http://www.jorvik-viking-centre.co.uk/
Walkthrough: The entrance times into Jorvik are staggered, making Viking-attired interpreters necessary for two reasons. They can engage with visitors queuing up to get into the building, and they are also on hand to guide a set number of people through the site at a time. This is measured by the number of people that step into ‘The Time Machine’, a theatrical presentation in which the interpreter demonstrates that the seated area is travelling back in time. After watching a video in which a male and female actor are shown wearing the fashions of each regressing time period, the theatre area floor shakes in time with an “error” that forces the interpreter to lead the group out of the area and through stylised cave walls towards ‘Jorvik’ itself. The ride consists of a cab suspended from an overhead conveyor which seats six visitors at a time and houses speakers on either side of the head rest, offering an audio tour in English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese and a second English guide aimed at children. The 10 minute ride takes the car through a reconstruction of Viking-era York, twisting towards particular areas and characters, with a mixture of stationary mannequins and animatronics dressed up as residents of the town. In addition to the sights of the town, visitors also get to experience various smells through odour droplet dispensers and fans, ranging from the smells of fish and roasted meat to that of the Viking man within the latrine! The narrative concludes upon the archaeological history which serves as the basis of the Jorvik reconstruction, with a Pepper’s Ghost lighting effect used to transition the ride back into the present day.
The grouping system is abandoned as visitors can wander around the remainder of the site at their leisure. The initial area is a relatively narrow connecting gallery with the left side wall displaying illustrative information about Viking history and culture, in lieu of panels. The opposite wall has more nooks and crannies, allowing for touchscreens testing the Viking mentality of visitors, live interpreter spaces for weaving or coin striking and an interactive which plays Nordic word pronunciations over speakers for the equivalent English word beside command buttons. The adjacent gallery houses the ‘Viking Ghosts’ exhibition. This consists of four main glassed off areas containing the artefacts which would either be crafted or owned by one of the four characters that are represented by transparent mannequins (again utilising the Pepper’s Ghost technique) and portrayed by actors, whose video accounts are projected into their display areas in sequence. There are additional touchscreens dotted around the gallery and additional cases near the exit, showcasing individual artefacts. The final area is ‘Unearthed’, wrapping up the end of Viking rule as well as promoting the archaeology involved in researching that era. The centre of the room features an encased skeleton, with panels detailing what information can be gained from various marks and fractures. There are further panels around the walls about the archaeological process as well as objects to handle and some final interactives. From here, the stairs lead up to the gift shop whilst advertising other York Archaeological Trust sites on the way up.
Admission Price: At time of visit, the charges were as follow:
Adult - £8.50
Ages 5-15 - £4.00
Concessions - £7.00
Please check to see whether these charges have since been revised.
Ownership: York Archaeological Trust
Tel. Number: 01904 543400
Website: http://www.jorvik-viking-centre.co.uk/
Walkthrough: The entrance times into Jorvik are staggered, making Viking-attired interpreters necessary for two reasons. They can engage with visitors queuing up to get into the building, and they are also on hand to guide a set number of people through the site at a time. This is measured by the number of people that step into ‘The Time Machine’, a theatrical presentation in which the interpreter demonstrates that the seated area is travelling back in time. After watching a video in which a male and female actor are shown wearing the fashions of each regressing time period, the theatre area floor shakes in time with an “error” that forces the interpreter to lead the group out of the area and through stylised cave walls towards ‘Jorvik’ itself. The ride consists of a cab suspended from an overhead conveyor which seats six visitors at a time and houses speakers on either side of the head rest, offering an audio tour in English, French, German, Spanish, Japanese and a second English guide aimed at children. The 10 minute ride takes the car through a reconstruction of Viking-era York, twisting towards particular areas and characters, with a mixture of stationary mannequins and animatronics dressed up as residents of the town. In addition to the sights of the town, visitors also get to experience various smells through odour droplet dispensers and fans, ranging from the smells of fish and roasted meat to that of the Viking man within the latrine! The narrative concludes upon the archaeological history which serves as the basis of the Jorvik reconstruction, with a Pepper’s Ghost lighting effect used to transition the ride back into the present day.
The grouping system is abandoned as visitors can wander around the remainder of the site at their leisure. The initial area is a relatively narrow connecting gallery with the left side wall displaying illustrative information about Viking history and culture, in lieu of panels. The opposite wall has more nooks and crannies, allowing for touchscreens testing the Viking mentality of visitors, live interpreter spaces for weaving or coin striking and an interactive which plays Nordic word pronunciations over speakers for the equivalent English word beside command buttons. The adjacent gallery houses the ‘Viking Ghosts’ exhibition. This consists of four main glassed off areas containing the artefacts which would either be crafted or owned by one of the four characters that are represented by transparent mannequins (again utilising the Pepper’s Ghost technique) and portrayed by actors, whose video accounts are projected into their display areas in sequence. There are additional touchscreens dotted around the gallery and additional cases near the exit, showcasing individual artefacts. The final area is ‘Unearthed’, wrapping up the end of Viking rule as well as promoting the archaeology involved in researching that era. The centre of the room features an encased skeleton, with panels detailing what information can be gained from various marks and fractures. There are further panels around the walls about the archaeological process as well as objects to handle and some final interactives. From here, the stairs lead up to the gift shop whilst advertising other York Archaeological Trust sites on the way up.
Highlights:
- The Time Machine.
- Jorvik.
- Viking Ghosts.
Lowlights:
- Queueing at peak times.
Access: Jorvik is located within the Coppergate Shopping Centre, near the Castle Area of York, which has a large pay and display car park adjacent to York Castle Museum and Clifford’s Tower. There are bus stops nearby and the site is a 15 minute walk from the railway station. There is a lift down to the attraction, although the site is only allowed to house one wheelchair user at a time due to health and safety regulations, which necessitates booking a timeslot in advance.
Overall Impression: I can’t help but love Jorvik! It isn’t be cheap, but you leave the site with an indelible impression of what York was like under Viking rule. The car ride may not be to everyone’s taste, but it is balanced out by the latter stages of the site due to the archaeological focus of the displays. The queuing to get into the site is annoying, but indicative of its popularity, and once you visit, your ticket is valid for 12 months and allows you to bypass the line to get in. All in all, a great attraction.
Update: 18th August 2010 – The entrance to Jorvik has since been refurbished, allowing a more expansive funnel area onto the Viking car ride itself, whilst promoting its archaeological roots at the same time. The Time Machine has been replaced by ‘Discover Coppergate’, a reconstruction of the archaeological dig pit of the site, beneath a well-lit transparent floor. The rest of the space is only selectively lit, with backlit panels on the site’s history as well as projections onto the wall and displays of 1000 year old timbers. The ride through Jorvik has been upgraded as well, with a number of the Viking animatronic characters upgraded to allow their mouths to move in synchronisation with the Norse speech playing within the in-car audio tour. Beyond these refurbishments, the rest of the site remains pretty much the same.
