Introduction
Keeping everyone informed about what was going on aboard a very busy and efficient cruise ship was an industry all of its own. In common with most ships this centred around the on-board print shop which at the time was equipped with two linotype printing presses. The equipment was worked by printers and compositors using traditional, time-honoured manual processes. No computer graphics or Desk Top Publishing in those days!
Indeed, for many years the only printing colour used was black. Colour printing was not introduced until the mid 1960s and even then it was very limited. However, even for such a small print shop, the range of pre-printed card and paper stock was huge, with almost every conceivable event having its dedicated stock.
The absence of any relevant card stock was no bar to production of any bespoke piece of printing. There are many instances on the main timeline pages where a cut-down menu cover would be substituted for things like special dinner party invites.
1965 Calendar
Calendars were mostly provided for the crew, with every day of the forthcoming year being annotated with the Caronia's projected position. A lot of these would be left with family at home, so they could keep track of where in the World the “Green Goddess” was
Folio Collection
These pages bring together just a selection of items from this vast range. One thing that's noticeable is that despite the traditional pressures of a requirement for everything to be ready “yesterday”, I have found few instances of typographic errors. This clearly demonstrates the extraordinary skill of the small team who worked in the print shop.
Other Ephemeral Items
Among other ephemeral items that I have featured in this folio are things that were printed ashore, like cruise rate schedules, passenger lists and postal stationery. I have also covered part of the range of Caronia paintings and souvenirs.
The latter has required quite considerable research, because not all items that carry either an engraving or image of Caronia were actually sold on board the ship, as is often claimed.
The final section covers the development of the Cunard logo during the Caronia's time. It's interesting to note that there were several designs used over the 20 year career of the “Green Goddess”, but the final one has been in use, almost unaltered, for well over 40 years!
