R.M.S (Royal Mail Ship) Andes, Glass Bottomed Hammered Pewter Tankard, Passenger Cruise Liner / Mail Ship
13cm high, 11cm base diameter approx
Marked to the base, Made in England and English pewter. Engraved to the front 'R.M.S Andes’
Good condition for age, with some marks, wear, distortion and tarnishing.
Dated around 1940 - 50's
RMS Andes was a 26,689 GRT steam turbine Royal Mail Ship, ocean liner, cruise ship, and the flagship of the Royal Mail Lines fleet. She was the second Royal Mail ship to be named after the South American Andes mountain range. The first RMS Andes was an A-class liner launched in 1913. In 1929 that RMS Andes was converted into a cruise ship and renamed Atlantis.
The second Andes was built in Belfast in 1937–39 and completed at the outbreak of the Second World War. The Admiralty almost immediately requisitioned her as a troop ship and had her converted to carry about 4,000 troops. In troop service she broke three speed records for long-distance voyages.
Andes was converted back into a civilian liner in 1947. She entered civilian service in 1948 on RMSP's premier liner route between Southampton, Rio de Janeiro and Buenos Aires. For seven years she worked the route full-time, but from 1955 the frequency of her liner voyages decreased and she spent an increasing proportion of her time cruising. In 1959–60 she was converted at Flushing, Netherlands into a full-time cruise ship. She was scrapped at Ghent in 1971.