The Åland-based goldsmith Maria Karlström designed a pendant specially for Viking Glory to commemorate the vessel’s christening. As is the tradition, the first person to wear the hand-forged gold jewellery, which depicts the sea surf and a lighthouse, was the vessel’s godmother, Isabel Lennse. A version of the Glory pendant made in silver is available for sale on board the new vessel.

The christening of the vessel harks back to an earlier tradition: the godmother of a new vessel is given a piece of jewellery as a souvenir by the shipping company and the shipyard. Viking Line gave the Swede Isabel Lennse, who christened Viking Glory, a Glory pendant made of gold, with its unique design evoking seafaring and the Baltic Sea archipelagos. A version of the pendant given to Viking Glory’s godmother which is made of recycled sterling silver can be purchased on board the vessel.

The Glory pendant was crafted by hand in Viking Glory’s home port of Mariehamn in the Åland Islands. The maritime quarter is a popular area for artisans and is also where the goldsmith Maria Karlström has her Guldviva studio. Karlström likewise designed the pendant in white gold that was presented to Viking Grace’s godmother in 2013.

“For Viking Glory, I wanted to create a piece of jewellery that reflects the sea in a timeless, refined way. The Glory pendant is a combination of traditional goldsmithing and modern design. The godmother pendant’s rose gold frame depicts a rope, symbolizing maritime travel. Within the frame, you see white foamy waves in white gold. A brilliant diamond sparkles on the crest of the waves. When light hits the stone, it calls to mind a lighthouse appearing on the horizon, a sight through the ages that has assured seafarers that they are almost home, safe in port,” Maria Karlström explains.

Environmental values were a priority in the making of Glory’s godmother pendant. The chain and the pendant itself are made from recycled 18-karat rose and white gold from Åland. The brilliant diamond was cut from an environmentally certified Arctic 0.12-karat ECOnatural diamond from the Swedish diamond house Diamanter Edwardson.