USS NEW YORK - LPD 21 Commissioning

[Ulrich Rudofsky]

http://www.ussny.org is an interesting private webpage about the new USS NEW YORK. But I ask myself, ........

why does a modern warship need a ceremonial silver tea service in this day and age? I received an email from http://www.ussny.org : “Opportunity to Be Part of Naval History Through Tiffany & Co. Registry”
What use does this fancy item have in the modern navy? Do other navies haul this stuff on board, too, just to keep up with an ancient tradition?

Opportunity to Be Part of Naval History Through Tiffany & Co. Registry
NEW YORK, July 6 /PRNewswire/ -- Individuals who want to be part of the history of the soon-to-be commissioned USS NEW YORK can have their name, or the name of someone they wish to honor, engraved on silver items that will become part of the ship's silver service.
USS NEW YORK, which will be commissioned in November 2009, was constructed in part of steel from the fallen World Trade Center. Per Navy tradition, a ship's silver service is used when hosting guests for ceremonial occasions. The silver service will stay with the ship throughout the ship's life, and by tradition, is passed to the next ship named for New York.
A silver registry listing items that are needed for the ship's silver service has been established at Tiffany & Co. The jeweler and silversmith has created custom serving pieces for U.S. Navy ships for more than a century. USS NEW YORK currently has a number of silver ceremonial pieces inherited from the two previous ships named NEW YORK, dating from the 19th century.
The registry, which includes a full line of engravable pieces, can be accessed through USS NEW YORK's Commissioning Committee's official website: http://www.ussny.org.
"USS NEW YORK is a special ship and this is a unique opportunity to be part of naval history by providing these special items," said retired Rear Admiral Robert Ravitz, co-chairman and executive director of USS NEW YORK Commissioning Committee.
About USS NEW YORK (LPD-21)
USS NEW YORK (LPD-21) is a new class of state of the art amphibious ship with a crew of 360 and is designed to carry 700 plus U.S. Marines and their equipment, including vehicles and aircraft. The ship has seven and a half tons of World Trade Center steel forged in her bow. She is also the first ship designed to carry the Osprey tilt rotor aircraft. The ship will officially enter into the U.S. Navy at a commissioning ceremony in New York City on November 7, 2009.
USS NEW YORK Commissioning Committee is a volunteer group of civilians from the greater New York area who provide funding for events surrounding the commissioning ceremony. The committee is also establishing a foundation for the benefit of the ship's crew and their families.
Tiffany & Co. has provided silver services for many ships, including the battleship USS NEW YORK (BB-34), built at the Brooklyn Navy Yard in New York City in 1911. The new ship will have several Tiffany-designed pieces from the battleship USS NEW YORK (BB-34) circa 1914-1948, as part of her silver inventory.

[Legend]

Isn't New York the one who was made from the remains of the Twin Towers?

[Ulrich Rudofsky]

The bow stem was mode from the WTC steel

http://www.navy.mil/search/display.asp?story_id=47803
http://www.ussnewyork.com/
http://www.ussny.org/