Stepping The Mast - National Museum of the Marine Corps - Triangle VA
N 38° 32.666 W 077° 20.579
18S E 295809 N 4268826
The Romans and Greeks did it and the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps still do it -- the ancient mariner superstition of laying coins under the mast.
Waymark Code: WMC5CV
Location: Virginia, United States
Date Posted: 07/27/2011
Views: 9
'Stepping the mast' is an old maritime custom of placing coins under a ship's mast that dates back to the ancient Roman and Greek sailors. It was believed that doing so would guarantee enough money to pay the crew if a ship wrecked at sea. Another legend from Greek mythology is that the ferryman at the River Styx, gateway to the underworld, makes sure that everyone who passes his way has enough silver to pay the toll into Hades.
With the construction of the U.S.S. Constitution in 1797, the U.S. Navy has continued with the coin-laying ceremony or 'stepping the mast' for good luck.
The National Museum of the Marine Corps in Triangle, VA is a circular building with a 210' steel mast set in the middle that soars up through the atrium. It was designed to evoke the image of the Marines raising the American flag on Iwo Jima during WW II. On March 8, 2005, a 'stepping the mast' ceremony was held to officially dedicate the site of the museum. Presenting coins were Gen. Michael Hagee, 33rd Commandant of the Marine Corps, Lt. Gen. Ron Christmas, Brig. Gen. Gerald McKay and Bud Baker. On March 29, the giant mast was erected.
The Marine Corps museum was opened on November 10, 2006. In the center of the museum known as the Leatherneck Gallery, stands the massive steel mast. The coins that were 'laid' at the mast are displayed near the base.
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