The Ladby ship was discovered on the 28th of February 1935 by pharmacist Poul Helweg Mikkelsen near Kerteminde in northeastern Fyn. The site remained unremarkable for centuries before his amateur eye spotted the unusual burial beneath the soil.
The Ladby ship is currently displayed at the Viking Museum at Ladby which holds administrative control since 1994. A full-scale reconstruction opened to the public in 2007 within a new building constructed that year.
A minor king who ruled the stretch of land near Kerteminde was buried inside the vessel as indicated by ornamental details and grave goods. Physical analysis suggests high status though few small human bones were actually recovered from the chamber.
The Ladby ship dates back to the early 10th century based on a gilded bronze link decorated in the Jelling style found among the grave goods. This timeframe aligns with other boat chamber graves from Hedeby and South Norway dating to the 9th and 10th centuries.
Attackers chopped all grave goods into hundreds of pieces shortly after the initial funeral to strip the family of their status markers. Some scholars attribute this desecration to political struggles between King Haraldr Blátönn and his heir Sveinn Tjúguskegg during the transition from paganism to Christianity.