Rare photo of an employee of the Russian merchant Fleet

In pre-revolutionary Russia, there were a large number of private steamship companies engaged in the transportation of passengers and cargo by sea and river waterways. Their scale could be different – from giants like the Russian Society of Shipping and Trade (ROPiT), the Voluntary Fleet, "Caucasus and Mercury" or "Airplane", which had dozens of ships, to small merchants who had one or two river steamers. There was no uniform uniform for the merchant fleet, as was practiced, for example, in the USSR, in the Russian Empire. Specialists of ship crews (captains, their assistants and mechanics) dressed in jackets and caps similar to those used in the navy, but for a long time they did not have any insignia. As large steamship companies grew (for example, by 1910 ROPiT had 76 mainline sea vessels and 140 auxiliary watercraft), each of them took the initiative to develop and submit their own uniforms for the highest approval. This process began in the 1890s and continued until the revolution itself.

The distinctive sign of the uniform of merchant sailors and rivermen at about the same time was the image of two crossed anchors, stamped from yellow or white metal and worn on the collars of coats and tunics, as well as on the bands of caps. On the collars of the frock coats, this emblem could be embroidered with a gimmick or be a metal overlay. On summer jackets and tunics made of light fabric, as a rule, overhead fittings were used, which could be easily removed when washing. Sometimes the image of anchors was supplemented with metal five-pointed stars: three for captains, two for senior assistants and one for mechanics. Other specialists were not supposed to have stars. In imitation of large shipping companies, the crews of ships belonging to small shipowners could also wear a similar emblem. In addition, similar fittings were used by students of river schools and nautical schools, of which there were more than a dozen in old Russia. It is these emblems that are visible on the collar of the person depicted in the photo, which allows you to accurately identify his profession. The image size is 48*108 mm. Guarantee of authenticity.