The Flying Dutchman

Cursed spectral ship

The Flying Dutchman is a legendary ghost ship doomed to sail the seas forever, never making port.

Sightings were considered omens of disaster.

The name extends to its cursed captain and to anyone who wanders endlessly without rest or destination: He's become a Flying Dutchman, drifting from city to city.

The legend has inspired operas, films, and nautical folklore.

ghostApparition of the dead
ghost shipCrewless vessel found adrift
shipSeagoing transport vessel
phantomInsubstantial apparition
cursedUnder a malevolent spell

sailor · Davy Jones · ocean · legend · Wagner · Richard Wagner · opera · storm · Cape of Good Hope · doom · haunted · sea · specter · captain · voyage · lost at sea · eternal · mist

Categories

operaopera, aria, arias, soprano, tenor
Early WagnerElisabeth, Elsa, Bridal Chorus, leitmotif
WagnerParsifal, Siegfried, Ring Cycle, Bayreuth Festival, Isolde
nicknamesnickname, pet name, alias, handle, moniker

Opposites

ontological status

The Flying DutchmanHMS Victory

Preserved first-rate ship-of-the-line

RMS Titanic · USS Constitution · Mayflower · Santa Maria · Cutty Sark

supernatural nature

The Flying DutchmanNoah's Ark

Scripture's great flood ship

earthbound · corporeal

maritime fate

The Flying Dutchmansafe harbor

Protected place for vessels

home port · journey's end · landfall · redeemed · at rest

Family

flying, flight, Dutch, Dutchman, Dutchmen, unmanned

Familiarity: Top 500,000
Profile: Used worldwide · Timeless · Everyday, not technical · Rated G