Trusty Shellback Cap Pin - USCG

Trusty Shellback Cap Pin - NAVY

Tell the world you’re a Coast Guard Shellback with this pin on any cap you own. Highlighted in Coast Guard-blue, 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 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. Safeguarding oceans and rescuing souls poses hazards enough, but daring thousands of nautical miles to perform those duties doubles the danger. Yes, time has evolved technology, steel, and helicopters, but wrangling with Mother Nature on the sea still casts peril upon Coasties.

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