The Queen’s Signal Flags
The Queen Mary is one of my favorite places to visit and photograph, she is a majestic ship steeped in fascinating history.
Launched in 1936, she had a long and successful career transporting passengers for the Cunard White Star Line, for a time holding the Blue Riband record for the fastest Atlantic crossing of a passenger liner. She also holds the record for the most passengers carried at one time, for many times during her time as a troop carrier in WWII, carrying in excess of 15,000 soldiers on a single voyage.
Since 1967 she has been permanently berthed in Long Beach, California, serving as a tourist attraction featuring restaurants, a museum and a hotel.
This particular image was captured up on the bridge of the ship, and depicts the cabinet which holds her maritime signal flags, a series of flags which can spell out a message, with each flag representing a letter.