Info.on The Royal Caribbean International cruise ship 'Navigator of the Seas'?

Question

Received a post card from the above named cruise ship and included in the technical details of the vessel on the reverse of the card it says 'Godmother; Steffi Graf'. I have never seen this before about a ship and wonder how and where it originated.

Answer 1

All Cruise Ships have Godmothers.  Other famous names on the Royal Fleet are Lauren Bacall, and Rosalyn Carter.

Answer 2

Ship christenings have come a long way since the Viking era, when ships were launched with human sacrifices to appease the gods and protect the new ship and its crew. While good fortune no longer requires human sacrifice, it does seem to require the human touch of the celebrity sort.

Ceremonial evolution

Traditionally, important ships were "christened" by royalty or by the ship's owners as they were launched from their building blocks into the sea. To mark these occasions, bottles of champagne or sparkling wine were broken against the ship's hull. Over time, the ritual duties were passed from high-ranking men to high-ranking women. In either case, the ceremony was meant to bring good luck to the ship and those who sailed on it.

Today's "godmothers," as the modern launchers are called, may no longer hobnob with the queen, but they are certainly high-profile standouts who attract lots of prized media attention for the cruise line. Recent ship godmothers include Rosie O'Donnell, Sophia Loren, Kathy Ireland and Martha Stewart. These women join an illustrious group of earlier godmothers that includes Queen Elizabeth II, Queen Sonja of Norway, Audrey Hepburn, Dame Julie Andrews, Shirley Temple Black, Lauren Bacall and the late Diana, Princess of Wales.

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/18542340/

Here are some articles you might find interesting on this subject ...

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cg...

http://www.frommers.com/articles/3661.ht...

http://www.zwire.com/site/news.cfm?newsi...

http://www.shippingtimes.co.uk/item598_r...

Answer 3

I think Gloria Estefan is also a godmother of a ship... I think Royal Caribbean??  

RC also just had a contest to become the godmother of I believe it was the Liberty, not sure who won it... but thats a pretty cool thing to be, if you are into cruising like I am!

Answer 4

oooooooooooooooooooo so excited!! I'm going on Navigator this coming Saturday,yippee 10 days off work. The Steffi Graf thing is like a figurehead, don't suppose she has ever been on the ship in her life

Answer 5

Steffi Graf did in fact christen this ship.Navigator is a lovely ship as all of the Voyager class ships.i will be present on her this Nov crossing the Atlantic from Uk.RCCL 43 times the only option in cruise travel.