Trusty Shellback Cap Pin - USMC

Trusty Shellback Cap Pin - NAVY

Tell the world you’re a U.S. Marine Shellback with this pin on any cap you own. Highlighted in the bold scarlet of the Marine Corps, this cap pin is proof you’ve gained hard-won acceptance into the Ancient Order of the Deep - belonging to an exclusive, time-honored brotherhood.

Bisecting the equator - “crossing the line” - in the early days of seafaring proved a feat to be celebrated for any mariner. Having made the trying trip with poise and fortitude, those aboard who were new to the equator were now transformed from Slimy Polliwogs to Trusty Shellbacks. However, becoming a Shellback meant not only braving perilous seas, ruthless storms, disease, and danger to cross the equator, but survival of a punishing rite-of-passage ceremony during the crossing.

Neptune still hails today’s mariners to his court to prove their worth. The Crossing the Line ceremony is now less wicked than centuries ago, but the honor remains. Battle, to a Marine, poses hazards all its own, but daring thousands of nautical miles to execute a strike doubles the danger. Yes, time has evolved technology, steel, and knowledge, but wrangling with Mother Nature on the sea still casts peril upon Marines.

Minted in the U.S. in antique bronze, this cap pin uses robust scarlet enamel to showcase the word “SHELLBACK” – telling all you’re not just any Shellback, you’re a Marine Corps Shellback. Let this handsome cap pin trumpet your acceptance into Neptune’s court.