The Flying Dutchman · A Ship That Never Reaches Port

Along the Dutch coast there is the story of the “Flying Dutchman”: a captain who swore in a storm that he would round Cape Horn even if it took until Judgement Day. He and his ship were condemned to sail the sea and never reach port.

Those who see the ship are said to come to harm. The best response is not to hail it and not to change course to follow it. In the twentieth century people still claimed to have seen it off the Cape of Good Hope, with torn sails and no one on deck.

Dutch sailors take this position on the matter: you need not be superstitious, but you should not be without respect.

Folklore / Zandvoort · Netherlands / Time immemorial