Anchorage

Synonyms / Other Terms Used

Anchoring

Category

Facilities, Transportation, Transport Facilities, Travel, Public Facilities, Tourism

Message / Function

To signify safe boat anchorage resp. to indicate the location of an anchorage area.

	Source	Description
A)	Parks Canada	Anchor in water, water shown as wavy line
	NARSSM	Anchor
	NZS 8603	Anchor
*)	Dreyfuss	Anchor
	BTA 1989	Anchor
1)	DER	Anchor
	Fiori	Anchor
	NPS	Anchor
	SEGD	Anchor
	Bolivia	Anchor
2)	Neves	Anchor placed diagonally

Discussion

Images of an anchor are used quite often as graphic symbols for Port and Marina, but only a few can be found looking for the labels Anchorage or Anchoring. Furthermore in some areas the anchor is also used for Maritime Attractions. As there is also no clear differentiation from all those referents, for our collection above we added some of these variants used to indicate the facilities mentioned. It seems the image of an anchor probably covers the largest semantic space of all maritime related symbols.

In our research we found only very limited information on data from tests regarding the referent Anchorage, but also some regarding pictograms displaying an anchor:

In a Comprehension Test for Shipping Pier, conducted in Austria (Brugger, 1977), the pictogram variant from page 153 of the Symbol Sourcebook by Dreyfuss, marked with *) above, was examined also. This image of an anchor elicited 30 % responses concerning Anchorage, another 30 % of the respondents answered with Port, and 20 % gave the answer Shipping Pier. Additional 6 % of the responses were related to Boat and Sea Voyage.

Neves (2012) examined two pictograms for the complex referent Marina / Estaleiro / Atracção de interesse marítimo (Marina / Shipyard / Maritime Attraction) on basis of the Comprehensibility Estimation procedure. These variants, marked as 1) and 2) in the table above, were judged as quite comprehensible: variant 1), which is used in Brazil and Portugal to indicate the location of a Marina, for example, reached a mean value of 80.4, while the pictogram labeled as Neves and marked with 2) was judged a little bit better with a value of 85.4.

Furthermore there is some information concerning comprehensibility available for the pictogram of the Parks Canada Identity Program (2007): since all pictograms that failed comprehension testing in Canada have been retired from use there, the Parks Canada pictogram No 6-4-210: Anchorage displayed above and marked with A), must have reached a comprehension rate of at least 60 % and less than 80 %, as this variant does not have the status Retired, but should be accompanied by a supportive text message.

Tests of pictograms displaying an anchor

Brugger, Ch. (1977): Abschlußbericht über den Erkennungstest. Report to the Austrian Standards Institute, Vienna, 1977-10-04.

Neves, J. (2012): Sistema de signos para informação turística: Metodologia para o desenvolvimento de sistemas sinaléticos. Tese de Doutorado - Universidade de Lisboa, Faculdade de Arquitetura.

Parks Canada (2007): Parks Canada Identity Program: Exterior Signage; Standards and Guidelines - Version 1. March 2007.