Viking takes delivery of the Saturn, names Ann Ziff godmother
Viking has named the chair of the Metropolitan Opera, Ann Ziff, as the ceremonial godmother of the Viking Saturn, which will be named in New York City on June 6.
Viking took delivery of the 930-passenger Saturn on Wednesday at the Fincantieri shipyard in Ancona, Italy. It is the brand’s ninth ocean ship.
In addition to serving as the Metropolitan Opera’s chair, Ziff is a jewelry maker and philanthropist. She sits on several boards, including the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Sing for Hope, the World Science Festival and the Los Angeles Opera.
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Ziff earned notoriety for making a $30 million gift to the Metropolitan Opera in 2010 in what was then the largest single gift in the organization’s history, according to the New York Times.
Viking chairman Torstein Hagen said Ziff has traveled as a Viking guest for years and that she “shares our commitment to the arts and cultural enrichment. Her contributions to the Metropolitan Opera, one of our longtime cultural partners, as well as many other important causes, are truly impressive.”
Viking has been in partnership with the Metropolitan Opera since 2016. Guests on Viking’s ocean ships are treated to the Metropolitan Opera’s “Live in HD” series, which includes a viewing of Mozart’s “The Magic Flute.”
Ziff also co-founded Smile Train, an organization that provides funds for free cleft lip and cleft palate surgery in developing countries, and was a board member at Maloto, an organization that provides housing and education for abused and abandoned girls in Malawi, a landlocked country in southeastern Africa.
In addition to her philanthropy, Ziff designs jewelry inspired by culture, art, music and travels for her brand, Tamsen Z.
Following the naming ceremony, the Viking Saturn will sail two itineraries this summer: the Iconic Iceland, Greenland and Canada itinerary sailing between New York and Reykjavik; and the Iceland and Norway’s Arctic Explorer between Reykjavik and Bergen, Norway.
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