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Symbol · symbol_atlantic_crossing

Atlantic Crossing

A record-of-service meaning: the wearer has crossed the Atlantic Ocean. One of the naval milestone meanings in which the tattoo functions as a credential rather than as a symbol of a quality.
Attested
Medium confidenceresearched

1 attested2 sources · T1

Registry entry only

The corpus has no enrichment row for this concept (symbols), so it carries its label, description, aliases and provenance and nothing further. No visual traits or cautions are recorded — not because they failed to load, but because that data does not exist in the corpus.

Provenance

2 resolved

  • Every tattoo makes a statement but what do they mean? (opens in a new tab)

    Tier 1

    The Historic Dockyard Chatham

    Maritime heritage museum article on naval tattoo designs. Verbatim: records show designs that are "marks of love, loss and life events" while others demonstrate "national identities, religious faith, and patriotic pride"; "Each swallow represents 5,000 nautical miles in a sailor's career." One of the few tier 1 sources that speaks about tattoo subject matter as lived human experience rather than as art history.

    museum · retrieved 2026-08-28

  • Facts about tattoos (opens in a new tab)

    Tier 1

    Royal Museums Greenwich

    National Maritime Museum page. Verbatim: the word 'tattoo' is "derived from the Tahitian word 'tatau', meaning to mark"; a pig and a rooster tattooed on the feet were "said to protect a seaman from drowning"; a full-rigged ship, an anchor, a dragon and a shellback turtle each record a specific voyage or crossing. Establishes protective (apotropaic) intent inside the tattoo domain.

    museum · retrieved 2026-08-28

Related concepts

1 link

Can symbolize · 1

  • ← incomingAnchorMotifAttested
    strength 0.75researched

    CREDENTIAL MEANING, two Tier 1 museums agreeing. Historic Dockyard: “A sailor would get an anchor tattoo to signify a successful Atlantic crossing.” Royal Museums Greenwich states the same milestone independently; its wording is quoted on source_rmg_tattoo_facts rather than here, because a quotation must be resolvable from the source this row actually cites. This is a record of a voyage made, not a symbol of a quality.