Mast stepping is the process of raising the mast of a boat. It may be a ceremonial occasion on a new boat, a necessary step (as in stepping the mast of a small sailing dinghy or gig), or simply routine (as following seasonal maintenance on a sailboat). The ceremony involves placing or welding one or more coins into the mast step of a ship, and is seen as an important ceremonial occasion in a ship's construction, thought to bring good luck. Although the coins were originally placed under the main-mast of a ship, they are now generally welded under the radar mast or laid in the keel as part of a

keel laying Laying the keel or laying down is the formal recognition of the start of a shipbuilding, 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 l ...

ceremony.

History

The ceremonial practice is believed to have originated in

ancient Rome In modern historiography, ancient Rome is the Roman people, Roman civilisation from the founding of Rome, founding of the Italian city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the Fall of the Western Roman Empire, collapse of the Western Roman Em ...

. One theory is that due to the dangers of early sea travel, the coins were placed under the mast so that the crew would be able to cross to the afterlife if the ship were sunk. The Romans believed it was necessary for a person to take coins with them to pay

Charon In Greek mythology, Charon or Kharon ( ; ) is a psychopomp, the ferryman of the Greek underworld. He carries the souls of those who have been given funeral rites across the rivers Acheron and Styx, which separate the worlds of the living and ...

in order to cross the

river Styx In Greek mythology, Styx (; ; lit. "Shuddering"), also called the River Styx, is a goddess and one of the rivers of the Greek Underworld. Her parents were the Titans Oceanus and Tethys, and she was the wife of the Titan Pallas and the mothe ...

to the afterlife, and as a result of this coins were placed in the mouths of the dead before they were buried. Another theory for this practice is that the insertion of coins in buildings and ships may have functioned as a form of

sacrifice Sacrifice is an act or offering made to a deity. A sacrifice can serve as propitiation, or a sacrifice can be an offering of praise and thanksgiving. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Gree ...

to thank the gods for a successful construction, or as a request for divine protection in the future.Museum of London:''Votive Deposits''
retrieved 26 October 2009 A third theory is that corrosion-resistant coins of gold or silver provided a physical barrier, minimizing the transmission of rot between the wooden mast and wooden mast step. The Blackfriars I shipwreck (circa 150 A.D.) had a coin in the mast-step.

History

See also

References

Further reading