The coin ceremony is an event which takes place at the

keel laying Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a ship's construction. It is often marked with a ceremony attended by dignitaries from the shipbuilding company and the ultimate owners of the ship. Keel laying is one o ...

, in the early stages of a ship's construction. In it, the shipbuilders place one or two coins under the keelblock of the new ship to bless the ship and as a symbol of good fortune. The coins are not normally fixed in place and are often retrieved when the ship sails out of the dry-dock, (although they are sometimes welded to the keel). The mast stepping ceremony is a similar event which occurs towards the end of a ship's construction, and involves the placing of coins underneath the mast of a ship. In shipbuilding today, the coins are normally welded beneath the radar mast.US Navy press release: ''Crew of New Multimission Destroyer Honors Namesake in Mast Stepping Ceremony''
17 July 2009, Retrieved 25 October 2009

References

Shipbuilding {{water-transport-stub