French Line

An old friend always refers to De Grasse as CGT’s “spunky” ship. What he means is that she was built as an intermediate liner in the 1920’s, but after the war, she alone carried the… read more ›

After some teething problems during her first year of service, the Flandre found a loyal following.  In a reference to her early problems, travel writer Temple Fielding said of her: “Now many travelers swear by… read more ›

A resurgent and proud French Line brought out two new ships in 1952. The Flandre and the Antilles. This bronze medallion is the maiden voyage medal for the Flandre as sold in her on-board gift… read more ›

Highly sought-after sterling silver medal for the beautiful France of 1912.  CGT only produced one four stacker, but she was an amazing one!  The artist who designed the medal, Louis Patriarche, was a famous French… read more ›

On-board in-service ashtray from the France of 1962.  Cobalt with real gold-leaf design.  The gold leaf on these are almost always worn because of use, but this one is one of the best I have… read more ›

Full-color brochure filled with 35 photos for both classes. Fold-out in the middle with an aerial photo of her at sea. Pull-out profile at the back which is color-coded to show you in what parts… read more ›

A full-color fold-open brochure with great graphics for the fantastic ss France.  One I haven’t had in quite some time.  The French Line was creative in the images with this brochure.  Really cute.  Measures about… read more ›

Coming in at a massive 46″ long, this is an amazing cut-away. In full-color, 232 items are listed in the extensive key. It is sad to think that this magnificent liner is now gone. As… read more ›

Miniature deck plan for one of the last Ships of State. Great detail. Some photos of her interiors.

Superb fold-out color-coded deck plan for first class. Who fantasizes about traveling any other way?  Eight color photos on glossy paper. In French and English. One of the best deck plans you can find for… read more ›

Wow!  The French Line really went all out on this glorious color-coded tourist-class (second-class) deck plan.  It is full glossy with all color photos.  CGT was being quite careful to cultivate the tourist market, and… read more ›

Very highly sought-after china demitasse cup and saucer in fine bone china as produced by Haviland for the French Line.  The gold leafing is in very good condition, including the CGT on the cup although… read more ›

ss France of 1962 hot-chocolate cup and saucer.  Highly sought after, in fact, I have never had another.  This massive saucer measures about 6.5″ with the cup measuring about 5″ from handle to rim.  In… read more ›

Everyone loved these art deco ashtrays when they were introduced on the Normandie. So much so that many of the Normandie’s were swiped as souvenirs. Because of this the French Line was forced to remove… read more ›

An interesting French Line brochure I have only had once before.  Covering the famous ss Ile de France, ss Flandre, and ss Liberte.  Dates to 1950s or, if you will, the 100 year give or… read more ›

A fascinating brochure for the French Line from the ss Normandie era.  As it says itself: “Who would dispute the statement that, without its personnel to give it soul, the most gigantic, most lavishly decorated… read more ›

A very proud French Line produced this bronze medal in 1955 for the 100th anniversary of the company.  Perhaps in a bit of austerity following the war, the size of the medals produced in the… read more ›

Great souvenir pin dish with the famous “sailor-at-the-helm” logo as seen on many French Line souvenirs.  Measures about 4¼” across.  Excellent condition.  A couple of colors to chose from so ask me if you don’t… read more ›

Very nicely done brochure for the 75th anniversary of the French Line in 1939.  28 pages with lots of illustrations and photos on board.  Some are even in color.  Great condition with some dirt on… read more ›

A well-made enamel lapel broach from the famous French Line.  Compagnie Generale Transatlantique sold these in the gift shop on the grand liners of the 1950s such as Ile de France and Liberte.  As opposed… read more ›

France Afloat.  Just the title conjures up thoughts of lazy days at sea and wonderful food.  Dates to the immediate post-war period since the Ile de France and Liberte are listed as being refurbished.  “Once… read more ›

I haven’t had this one in a while.  A fantastic brochure for the French Line’s famous ss Ile de France.  What can be said about her–one of the most famous liners of all time and… read more ›

Never seen another of these!  Tourist-class brochure for one of the French Line’s greats.  16 pages with 13 images, most of which I have never seen before.  It’s like a tour of tourist class!  Dated… read more ›

Stunning tissue first-class deck plan for the revolutionary CGT liner Ile De France.  Measures about 42″ x 39″.  Dated January 1, 1928, which makes her less than a year old.  Color coded and in near-mint… read more ›

Very rare unused invitation to visit the Ile de France before she entered service.  Embossed CGT flag with day’s schedule on the right.  Measures 11″ x 4.25″.

After Normandie, the most beloved ship of the French Line fleet is a toss up in my opinion between the France of 1962 and the Ile. Like De Grasse, Ile received a post-war medallion of… read more ›

Passenger list for the famous French liner Ile de France.  CGT really loved this cover for their passenger lists, using it for a very long time!  This list is for her voyage from New York… read more ›

Here is an invitation I think we all would have loved to have received.  It is for Press reporters invited to luncheon in July 1949 to mark the return to service of the famous Ile… read more ›

Extremely rare and desirable sugar tongs from the Ile de France.  Not only are they super cute, but they are in fantastic condition.  Measuring about 5″ and made by Christofle. 

Extremely tough to find salt and pepper shakers from the first-class dining room of the ss Ile De France.  Made by Christofle and in very good condition.  They have the CGT logo in the silver… read more ›

Formerly the NDL liner, Europa, CGT’s ss Liberte was taken over by the French Line after the war and completely gutted and redecorated.  Despite several mishaps during her refit, she finally made her maiden voyage… read more ›

A very rare puzzle of the French liner Liberte (the ex-NDL liner Europa!) arriving in New York.  May be taken from a photo of her arriving on her maiden voyage, given all the tugs around… read more ›

Cabin-class deck plan for the ss Liberte.  13  photos.  When opened, it measures almost 31″ in length.  Excellent condition.

First-class deck plan for the ss Liberte.  She was certainly CGT’s finest ship in the immediate post-war era.  It’s a fascinating look at the layout of what used to be the North German Lloyd flyer… read more ›

Tourist-class deck plan for the ss Liberte.  It’s surprising how small her tourist-class accommodation was.  8 photos and dated 11-15-50.  When opened, it measures 31″ in length.  Excellent condition.

One of the most interesting souvenir hunts in history was created by the famous French Line.  CGT took an opportunity to manufacture their ashtrays designed by Jean Luce in fine porcelain for their flagship ss… read more ›

Lovely portrait ashtray from this famous French liner.  Measures about 4.5″ in diameter.  Marked on the back “Orchies Moulin des Loups & Hamage, France.”  A touch of crazing here and there.

Lovely shield-shaped baggage tag for the famous French liner Normandie.  The French Line always produced amazing graphics!  Used by a Mrs. Hudson.

A friend of mine once characterized the type of people who could afford first-class on the ss Normandie as “the privileged class, enjoying their privileges.”  I love the picture that paints in my mind.  The… read more ›

A tourist-class brochure for the Normandie in French.  Fantastic cover art, but what makes it interesting are the renderings inside which make third-class look far more inviting but also suggest it is a maiden-voyage-era brochure. … read more ›

The French Line must be lauded for their efforts as they seem to have produced far more and far nicer brochures for all classes for the Normandie than the Cunard Line did for the Queen… read more ›

Unusual cut-away for the ss Normandie.  Your favorite French Line ship is surrounded by nearly 24 interiors renderings, meaning that it certainly dates to before the maiden voyage.  Great cover art!  Something CGT was really… read more ›

The French Line really went all out on intriguing deck plans for the Normandie.  This is a cool plan where a small card pulls out showing various spots on the ship.  You have a key… read more ›

Lovely souvenir enameled broach as sold aboard the Normandie in her gift shops, showing the shield of the province of Normandie.  As opposed to a pin, this one can be put through the lapel hole… read more ›

What would constitute the finest cruise of all time?  Not simply a good vacation, but the high-water mark of all ocean excursions?   Clearly Normandie’s two cruises to Rio should make a list of some… read more ›

Tourist (second) class menu from the ss Normandie’s August 2, 1936, crossing.  No caviar, but the food looks predictably delicious! Very good condition.

Second-class passenger list for the Normandie’s voyage from Le Havre to New York via Southampton.  Sailing date was July 7, 1937.  1,112 passengers on board.  Back shows where it had been attached to an album.

Here is something I don’t believe I have ever had before.  A passenger list dated August, 1936, for third class on board the ss Normandie.  She was making money on this trip.  The French Line… read more ›

Gleaming woodwork, vast space, and your own dining table were hallmarks of the Caen Suite.  Postcard unused and in excellent condition.

Attractive fold-over stationary from the fantastic French Line ss Normandie.  Unused and in excellent condition.  A few sheets available.

What a cool bit of film!  The Normandie Tru Vue filmstrip.  Super sharp and ultra 3-D.  These are a joy to view and own.  Film is in excellent to mint condition in its original box… read more ›

One of the finest items I have ever been able to offer from the Normandie.  An ultra-rare Lalique bone-china dinner plate from the French Line’s flagship.  This china was used exclusively in her best suites. … read more ›

When outfitting the famous ss Normandie, the French Line paid careful attention to the details of dining.  You can see this attention to detail in this magnificent oyster plate.  Designed by the famous Jean Luce,… read more ›

Very hard-to-find maiden voyage certificate for the return maiden voyage of the amazing ss Normandie.  Made out to Miss Ray Senior.  How cool would it be to find a passenger list for this voyage with… read more ›

Post card booklet for the ss Normadie.  The French love these booklets, but they never seem to have caught on for the British lines.   Contains 15 printed post cards ranging from the bridge and… read more ›

The French loved post card books, and they produced many different kinds for each of their ships.  Among the parts of Normandie illustrated in this one are the winter garden, chapel, swimming pool, theater, tourist-class… read more ›

Silver dinner fork from the first-class service of the ss Normandie.  Made by Christofle and measures about 8″ long.  Small bit of wear to the CGT logo on the back.

Lovely and rarely seen fish knife by Christofle as used in the first-class dining room of the ss Normandie.  Measures about 8.25″ in length.  A touch of wear to the CGT logo on the back.

The French Line, ever attentive to your culinary needs, provided these small silver plated pepper grinders for table use.  This one has the classic ss Normandie “dip” in the “C” in CGT.  In very good… read more ›

Imagine for a moment the archetype French dining-room steward presenting your order table side on this silver serving tray from the ss Normandie’s on-board service.  Made by Christofle, the famous silver firm CGT turned to… read more ›

Souvenir pin tray from the French Line’s ss Normandie.  Measures about 5″ in diameter.  Originally sold by the ocean-liner dealer Ken Schultz as it still has his sticker on the back.

Here’s an odd piece!  Unusual porcelain souvenir from the ss Normandie in the shape of a watering can.  Color portrait on the front of her at sea.  Stands about 5.25″ tall.  No damage but some… read more ›

Running 24 pages and full of information with 16 rarely seen photos.  She was an absolute beauty and is a ship I would love to have tried!  I always found it interesting that CGT, unlike… read more ›