Around The World
Submerged
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THE TRITON PLAQUE
The story of the Triton Plaque is long and very complex. It involves dusty books, bad Latin, sleepless nights, hot foundries, temperamental woodcarvers, Spanish grandees, hair loss and German Admirals. We plan to put the whole story on a separate website page one day, but for now, the short version will have to do.
Suffice it to say that when Ned Beach came back to New London on 5 May 1960 with orders to take Triton around the world, he asked Tom Thamm to design a plaque that would commemorate the voyage. He also told Thamm that we would follow Magellan's route. Thamm had 8 days to do it - and a few other things. It got done. The Triton plaque is 23" in diameter, inscribed with lines of latitude and longitude. In the center is a replica of Magellan's flagship, the Trinidad. Beneath the ship are the dates 1519 - 1960, commemorating Trinidad's departure from Sanlucar de Barrameda, Spain and Triton's departure from New London. Around the ship is a wreath of laurel, used by the ancient Greeks to crown victors. At the wreath base are submarine dolphins. Around the circumference is the raised inscription, "Ave Nobilis Dux - Iterum Factum Est" which means, "Hail Noble Captain - It is Done Again." The original is mounted on the wall of the city hall of Sanlucar de Barrameda. Copies hang in the Mystic Seaport Museum, the U.S. Naval Academy, the Naval Historical Association in Washington and the Submarine School and Submarine Library in Groton.