A.P. Møller – Maersk is the Danish shipping and logistics conglomerate whose visual identity centers on a white seven-pointed star on a blue background. The star has been part of the company’s heritage since 1886, when Captain Peter Mærsk Møller placed it on the funnel of his first steamship, the Laura, as a tribute to his wife Anna after she recovered from a serious illness. In a letter to Anna dated October 6, 1886, he wrote that the star was a reminder of the evening he prayed for her and saw a star in a grey, overcast sky.[1]
Design and History
The star was adopted as the house flag when the Steamship Company Svendborg was founded in 1904, and it carried over to the Steamship Company of 1912 when A.P. Møller established that second company.[1] The first official logo for liner shipping services was introduced in 1928, when the new Maersk Line needed a logo to market its service between the United States and Asia. A.P. Møller described the process: “I had the funnel and its surroundings on one of my vessels photographed, and based on this image we developed the Maersk Line logo.”[1]
The current logo dates to the early 1970s, when Maersk decided a more modern approach was needed. Danish designer and architect Acton Bjørn was commissioned to create a logo that was easily recognisable, timeless, flexible, and easy to remember.[1] Bjørn designed the square logo, reusing the original elements from 1886: the star and the blue color. Alongside the logo, he developed a special alphabet used for text on the sides of container ships, and the entire concept was compiled into a communications manual.[2]
The new logo first appeared on three Maersk Air Boeing airplanes in 1972, with deployment across the rest of Maersk following.[1] The container ship Svendborg Mærsk, in the Maersk fleet from 1974 to 1999, was the first vessel to carry the new Maersk alphabet on its hull.[2]
Meaning and Symbolism
The star’s origin is personal and religious. Captain Peter Mærsk Møller saw a single star in a grey sky while praying for his wife’s recovery, and he later described the star on the funnel as “a reminder that the Lord hears our prayers.”[1] The star was chosen as the house flag for the newly formed shipping company in 1904 because it was “the obvious choice” for the family.[1]
Today, Maersk describes the star as “both a reminder of our heritage and a symbol of our future; a visual manifestation of the values that have been handed down through generations.”[1] The MAERSK name and star logo are registered trademarks of A.P. Møller – Mærsk A/S.[3]
Typography and Design
Acton Bjørn developed a special alphabet alongside the 1972 logo, used for lettering on the sides of container ships and other applications.[2] The logo and MAERSK letter fonts were developed for Maersk Line and eventually introduced across most business units in the group.[4]
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