Probably the last ship to be constructed by Harland & Wolff, the Belfast shipyard that built the Titanic, was named at a dockside ceremony today.
The 22,000-tonne vessel Anvil Point was christened in the traditional manner with the breaking of a bottle of champagne against her hull. The yard's order book is now empty and most of its remaining workforce will be laid off shortly.
"Today is full of mixed emotion for all of us as it is likely to be the last new-build ship delivered from Harland & Wolff in the immediate future," said chief executive Mr Bill Alexander.
"But it also marks a new chapter in the company's history as we adapt to new markets and reposition ourselves as a successful engineering services company."
Anvil Pointis the 1,742nd - and probably last - ship to be built at the yard, marking the end of Belfast's long history of shipbuilding, once the bulwark of Northern Ireland's economy.
Founded in 1861, the Harland & Wolff yard became famous as one of the world's best-equipped shipbuilding facilities. During the First and Second World Wars, it played a prominent role in building British naval vessels.
But the yard will be best remembered for constructing the ill-fated luxury liner RMS Titanic, which sunk on her maiden voyage in 1912 after hitting an iceberg in the Atlantic.
Despite the disaster, in which more than 1,500 people died, the shipyard maintained its reputation for constructing high quality naval vessels.
Harland & Wolff, which is 92 percent owned by Norwegian construction group Fred Olsen Energy, has gone through several rounds of job cuts in recent years in response to stiff competition from the Far East, falling world prices and costly overheads.
When the Anvil Pointcompletes her sea trials in a few weeks time, 265 of the remaining 386 employees will be made redundant.
In its heyday in the late 19th century the yard employed 35,000 people.
Famous ships to have been built at the shipyard include the Titanic, HMS Belfast, the aircraft carrier HMS Eagleand the Canberra.
PA &