Ritual is a long-standing tradition of naval sailors who become a 'Shellback' when sailing across the equator

actual black & white, 8x10

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"After crossing the equator the Pollywogs (sailors who previously hadn't crossed) begin the initiation process which has varied across ships, and fleets over the centuries. One more controversial aspect is the “Royal Baby”, where the Command Master Chief finds the most obese hairy Sailor aboard the ship and dresses the “baby” in a diaper and smothered his belly in lard. The Pollywogs then were required to crawl on their hands and knees to the Royal Baby and eat a maraschino cherry out of his navel."

Sourced from a grouping of US Navy sailor ephemera from the late 1940s-early 50s

good condition with minor cosmetic wear; would look fantastic framed in a home bar/ man cave/ nautical room