Once situated above the fireplace in the first class smoking room, “The Lady” is one of the most infamous artefacts on the SS President Coolidge.
So the story goes, this beautiful porcelain statue of an Elizabethan woman riding a unicorn was boarded over when the SS President Coolidge was turned into a WWII troop carrier. Then one day, as divers were making their way through the ship, one man glimpsed something white shining in the darkness. Upon further investigation they uncovered the intricate statue hidden behind some rotting wood.
However Espiritu Santo is no stranger to earthquakes and one day “The Lady” was so violently shaken that she fell off her original perch. Divers recovered her but the frame, one hand and the unicorns horn were sadly already broken.
So she was briefly brought to the surface, fixed up and then placed back inside the ship. According to local guides, they first put her back around 30m but became concerned that passing yachties may try and recover the prized piece. So she was moved one last time near the dining room and now rests at around 40m, just within recreational dive limits.
Sometime over the years a tradition arose amongst divers to ‘kiss the Lady’ however it is important to note that this is a deep, penetration dive and therefore only available to those with Deep Speciality and/or Decompression Procedures Certifications.
