Last modified: 2012-05-19 by rob raeside
Keywords: name pennant | onomast |
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Walter Holly
schooner
built 1888 Gardner's Creek, New Brunswick
image by Martin Grieve
Other (outside) links:
Kevin Harrington, editor of Flagscan, the journal of the Canadian Flag Association/ L'Association canadienne de Vexillologie, has written an article in this summer's journal, No.73, on a type of flag which has been almost completely ignored by vexillologists, and which does not, as far as I can see, feature on FOTW's web-site.
With Kevin's permission, Martin Grieve has made images of several of the fifty illustrations, and I have copied the article, omitting only details of the other illustrations, and selected sources.
The "Name Pennant" or Onomast in Maritime Vexillology, by Kevin Harrington.
Marco Polo
immigrant ship
built 1851 Saint John, New Brunswick
image by Martin Grieve
Queen of the Fleet
barque
built 1876 Dorchester, New Brunswick
image by Martin Grieve
Anyone accustomed to seeing on the wall of a kitchen, barber shop, or country store years ago, those large and colourful calendars showing paintings of sailing vessels straining 'gainst the forces of wind and wave, would be aware that often these vessels bore a special banner. This was in addition to a house flag or the national ensign. This special pennant - it may have been quite long and tapered, or even a swallow-tail - carried the name of the vessel. Our purpose here is to introduce a special term 'onomast', to identify this type of flag (from the old Greek participle 'onomast', 'called' or 'named') and to provide data of time, ship type, and place for the onomast. (I had considered the new term 'nominifer', from the Latin, meaning 'name-bearer', but the Greek word slipped more easily from the tongue and it wore a nautical smile. 'Onomast' may assimilate more easily into other languages too.)
Of what vexillological interest are Onomasts or Name Flags ?
John Gibson
Barque,
Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, 1875
image by Martin Grieve
Peri
Schooner,
Orwell Bay, Prince Edward Island, 1848
image by Martin Grieve
Dew Drop
Brig,
built Hull, UK 1829
London-Quebec service
image by Martin Grieve
Washington
Ocean Steam Navigation Company
1847
U.S.Mail
image by Martin Grieve
At first glance, onomast may seem just as banal in design as many logotypical corporate banners. If so they would attract few to their study. However on descending a little deeper into these waters, we find that there is often more than just a ship's name in black letters applied to a white triangle or streamer. You may notice these patterns:
Hercules
Finnish ship under Russian flag
image by Martin Grieve
Maple
Coastal steamer
1914 built at Ayr Scotland by Ailsa Shipbuilding Co. for Laird Line
image by Martin Grieve
Louis Jolliet
Ferry (traversier)
Quebec City
image by Martin
Grieve
Lady Lilford
Brigantine built 1842
Seven Mile Bay, Prince Edward Island
image by Martin
Grieve
Reaper
Built 1875
Truro, Cornwall
Owned by a Newquay family
image by Martin Grieve
Mary Powell
Steamboat
built 1861, New York
'The Queen of the Hudson'
image by Martin Grieve
Mary Eliza
Ship perhaps owned by James Udall
Great Neck, 1845 (Source: Mastai p.73)
image by Martin Grieve
Sarah Dixon
Shaver Transport Co.'s Red Collar Fleet Columbia River, USA
c1900
image by Martin Grieve
Mary
Sloop
built Padstow, Cornwall
1833
image by Martin Grieve
Atalanta
Brigantine
West River, Prince Edward Island, 1868
image by Martin Grieve
Ane
Danish brig
built Sonderbo, 1867
image by Martin Grieve
Zinga
Brig
Mount Stewart, Prince Edward Island, 1877
image by Martin
Grieve
Such name pennants were almost a rule of the late 19th century ships in Adriatic, too. I have been wandering about these, that are portrayed on almost every painting of the time showing the ship - and there is great number of such painting preserved in the museums in the cities along the Croatia coast.
I was wondering whether there was some Austria (latter Austro- Hungarian) regulation regarding the issue, but as far I have found no reference to the existence of such rules regulations). But I must admit that I have not been digging very deep, so maybe there still is something to be found.
These pennants are an important part of the Croatian flag history, and they are mentioned in at least two main Croatian works [bor96] and [isa01]. Since there was no way that the Croatian owned ships could fly the Croatian tricolour as their ensign, in spite of the several attempts to facilitate that, the Croatian captains figured out the way how to fly the tricolour in spite of the "foreign" ensign (the Austrian red-white-red ensign was foreign flag in the eyes of the Croatian patriots, just as the "dual" ensign after 1869). They were making their name pennants in shapes of the Croatian tricolour with various motives in them, most prominently displaying the name of the ship. Similarly the shipping companies used in that place their house flags, which were also the national tricolours with company initials (two such companies are mentioned in [isa01]).
The collections of paintings of old ships in Rijeka maritime museum (catalogue issued in 2000), and also paintings in the Split maritime museum, show also other types of the name pennants, triangular with red and blue borders, but also those with Austrian red-white-red combinations and Hungarian red-white-green, just as some entirely different types (i.e. without the national elements).
I have been thinking of covering that in some further work (possibly for the Vexillobaires), but at the moment I seem to have way to little data to go much further.
One other type of flags may be mentioned here, as well. Beside the name pennants that were hoisted from the mainmasts, there was an other flag hoisted atop the foremast (in the ships of eastern Adriatic in the 19th century, i.e. those under Austrian and A-H flag). This flag was as a rule entirely blue or sometimes red or rarely white only in each case inscribed with large numerals (mostly modern Arabic numerals, but also in some cases the Roman numerals). The number I have noticed are two and three digit, and I suppose that they are the registration numbers of ships or something very similar. I have not found any regulations regarding this, but there should be some, otherwise these flags would not be present on almost every ships painting in the collections I mentioned. Of course, the number is different on each ship (I haven't seen two paintings of the same ship, but I assume that one would have to expect the same flag...)
I suspect, further on, that the field colour of these flags may possibly
indicate the registration port, in which case, these flags would have further
importance to vexillology. However, this is still just a theory that would
have to be tested. These may be also some other plausible way these colours
might have been designated (say by the ship's size), or it may have been no
rules regarding it colours altogether...
Željko Heimer, 1 September 2004
I cannot think of any use for pennants bearing numerals except to indicate
the ships registered number. And I should think it quite likely that the
colour of the pennant might indicate the home port. British fishing boats were
allocated two letters to indicate the home port, and numbers to identify the
vessel. As long as these were painted on the hull, the ship was not required
to hoist an ensign. "2-(1). A ship belonging to any subject of Her
Majesty shall, on a signal being made to her by one of Her Majesty's ships,
and on entering or leaving any British or foreign port, hoist the proper
national colours. This section shall not apply to any fishing vessel duly
registered, lettered and marked as required by the Acts relating to the sea
fisheries."
Merchant Shipping (Colours ) Act 1889.
The flags on the ship on Dominique
Cureau's web-site are different, being flags of the International Code of
Signals indicating the Code Signal letters allocated to the ship for the
purpose of identifying herself when signaling. I imagine that the number on
the ship's certificate of registry would have been quite different.
David Prothero, 3 September 2004
I guess that name-pennants, in general, were what the Victorians called 'fancy flags'; flown only on high-days, holidays and special occasions, such as maiden voyages, and for the benefit of photographers and painters. Short distance ferries and excursion boats perhaps wore them more regularly, as a form of advertising, and there is a surprisingly large number of tugs in the list of ships that Kevin collected; so perhaps they also, were regular users. A tug of about 1935, is the most modern vessel flying a name-pennant that I have found. Described as the first British electric tug, the photograph shows the "Acklam Cross" on what is possibly her acceptance trials; ensign at the stern, house flag at the aftermast, name-pennant at the foremast, Union Jack (no white border) in the bows, and a number of men in over-coats and bowler hats standing around on deck.
Name-pennants found by Kevin Harrington cover ships from Australia,
Britain, Canada, Denmark, Netherlands, Russia/Finland and USA. A painting by
Antonio Jacobsen (1850-1921) shows the German barque "Ceres" flying
the US flag at the fore, and her name in white on a blue pennant at the main
David Prothero, 20-21 October 2004
Certainly this would be 19C practice in the Adriatic (Italy,
Austria/Hungary...) and obviously in Northern Europe. I missed if anyone
mentioned France, but I would guess it was so. However, as far as I have
noticed, we still have no examples from Spain (and Portugal). I was thinking -
possibly there was no such practice since the place taken by he name pennant
was there taken by the pennant designating th maritime region of registration.
Is that so, or was this flown from an other mast? I am sure that it should not
be difficult to find some Spanish 19C ship's paintings on the Net to
confirm/deny that.
Željko Heimer, 22 October 2004
"Tall Ships: A Fleet for the 21st Century" by Thad Koza has
plenty of pictures of contemporary tall ships, flying onomasts or pennants of
the kind he described in his article.
David Ott, 5 December 2004
Lord Keith
Cornish trawler
Padstow harbour, 1930s
image by Martin Grieve
Tritonia
Cornish trawler
Padstow harbour, 1930s
image by Martin Grieve
Ticonderoga
Side-wheel steamer on Lake Champlain
Built Shelburne, Vermont 1906
image by Martin Grieve