What does crossing the line mean in the Navy?
The shellback is simple enough: A sailor on official duty “crosses the line” of the equator. A golden shellback is more impressive; it means they’ve crossed the International Date Line. Even rarer, crossing at the Prime Meridian grants you access into the Order of the Emerald Shellback.
What does the line crossing ceremony commemorate?
The line-crossing ceremony is an initiation rite that commemorates a person’s first crossing of the Equator.
What is the tradition when crossing the equator?
The ceremony is a long-standing tradition of initiation that commemorates a sailor’s first time crossing of the equator. It is a memory that is etched into each and every seafarer, for it is an event that ushers in a sense of belonging to one’s profession.
What is the Navy ceremony for crossing the equator?
The US Navy holds a massive, two-day line crossing ceremony wherein experienced sailors (those who have been across the equator) are called Shellbacks, Trusty Shellbacks and Honorable Shellbacks, the Sons of Neptune. Newbies are called Pollywogs, Slimy Pollywogs or Slimy Wogs.
How old is shellback tradition?
400 years
A Time-Honored Tradition The ritual dates back at least 400 years in Western seafaring. The ceremony observes a mariner’s transformation from slimy Pollywog, a seaman who hasn’t crossed the equator, to trusty Shellback, also called a Son or Daughter of Neptune.
What is a shellback tattoo?
Shellback Turtle Tattoos Like a ship at full mast, a shellback tattoo showed a sailor’s experience at sea. Once a sailor crossed the equator, he earned the right to get a turtle inked on his body. The longer someone had spent at sea, the more tattoos they could show off.
Why do Navy pants have 13 buttons?
Those 13 buttons are supposed to represent the 13 original colonies. (A sailor from Utah once complained that he wasn’t represented.)