This page is part of © FOTW Flags Of The World website

House flags of Liberian shipping companies

Last modified: 2018-12-04 by rob raeside
Keywords: goulandris | ghj | hjg | asterix | getafix | idefix | triangle (red): isosceles | maersk | møller | a. p. møller | star: 7 points (blue) |
Links: FOTW homepage | search | disclaimer and copyright | write us | mirrors



See also:


H. J. Goulandris

HJG house flagimage by Jarig Bakker, 27 Dec 2004

Scott’s Caltex book of Flags and Funnels [scx59] shows as #6 H.J. Goulandris (Liberian registar), blue burgee, yellow "G" surrounding yellow "HJ". (Brown [wed51] shows also Goulandris Bros (London) and Goulandris Bros (Piraeus).
Jarig Bakker, 27 Dec 2004


“Gaul” companies

Asterix Shipping, 1975-1982

Getafix Shipping, 1976-1982

Idefix Shipping, 1976-1979

“Gaul” companies 
houseflag image by Peter Hans van den Muijzenberg, 28 Oct 2008

White field, narrow red and blue horizontal stripes set away from the edges (a far cry from the Dutch national colours) and between said stripes a red right triangle presenting its hypothenuse to the hoist. In fact the triangle makes up one half of a virtual square positioned in the centre.

These companies were related to the Dutch Nigoco shipping group and appear in: F. Haalmeijer and B. Scholten: Van Nievelt, Goudriaan & Co’s Stoomvaart Maatschappij (Nigoco), a 1995 book. The Monrovia-based firms ‘Asterix Shipping Corporation’, ‘Getafix Shipping Corporation’, and ‘Idefix Shipping Corp. NV’ were short-lived. A tanker bought, speculatively, in 1972 by FHRM (another Nigoco company at Monrovia) was named Asterix as one of the European director’s children were fond of the albums.

Sold the next year, four additional ships with names like Maasrix or Schelderix (you see the pattern) were operated for a few years but as there was no profit these were chartered out or sold for scrap. In fact different firms were founded to manage a single ship, as can be seen on this Nigoco list (adding years of operation):

  • Asterix, 1975-1982;
  • Getafix, 1976-1982;
  • Idefix, 1976-1979

One has to be very careful not to mix up (all too much) these ventures — keeping in mind, for instance, that Nigoco ownership did not necessarily also imply operation — but I have tried to divide them in a sensible way – per house flag!

Jan Mertens, 28 Oct 2008


A. P. Møller / Maersk Line

Apmol houseflag image by António Martins, 27 Feb 2007

According to Loughran [lgr79], a flag with reversed colours was used by certain vessels [of Danish company A. P. Møller / Maersk] under Liberian registry.
Neale Rosanoski, 27 Apr 2004