Hi Gerolf,
thanks for confirming Schulau. I went through your other shots from that spot and the shore line behind is the same of Hanskalbsand, this one was just on a murky day so it looks further away.
Rgds, Manfred

On the evidence presented thus far I think we can be confident that this ship is Ise Maru on her way up to Hamburg to be handed over to new owners in late 1971.

The bridge front is quite unusual with the inboard 'cut-out' on the boat deck. The only other ships I have found it on are a pair of ( much smaller ) Yuyo Marus ( #5 and #8 )built by Hitachi in the 50's.

The place is definitively Welcome Point at Schulau.
That was the place I went shipspotting at that time with a few exceptions(port of Hamburg, Kiel Canal) But for that foto I am sure.
Gerolf

@pieter:
Yes, this can very well be, pre-sale inspection docking.
Owner`s change in 1972, all I have.

@miraflores:
I did not doubt you, it was just meant as a suggestion after having spent 30 years on River Elbe, every day.

@Manfred,
I spend some years of my life in that region, so I know what I had writte in my comment.

Manfred, it could also be that she has already been sold to her new owners and is heading to a yard for the hand-over.

@miraflores:
Gerolf should hopefully remember where he took this photo.
Maybe you are happier with the location of Strandweg Blankenese somewhere with Neßsand to the right of the ships stern and Cranz to the left in the distance overlooking the Mühlenberger Loch?

@Cisco:
Before a tanker may dock at a yard in Hamburg she HAS to be empty and gasfree, have never been an issue here with special berths available. For example in 1964 Howaldtswerke Hamburg alone repaired 750 ships, whereof 356 were drydocked, at least one third were tankers. 14 ESSO-tankers were retrofitted with bulbous bows at the late 1960s...and so on.
Have a look here:
http://www.ralf-thorein.de/html/jahreshefte.html
And... some repairs maybe could not have been delayed until Japan came insight?
Best regards, Manfred

Manfred, why would she not being up to drydock in Hamburg?
1971 .. Japan still had lots of currency controls in place and were far more interested in getting money into Japan than spending foreign currency overseas.
Also there would have been the issue of tank cleaning and gas freeing before drydocking after a northern Europe discharge.

That said we once -1964 - discharged crude in Siberia Dock, Antwerp, and then tank cleaned - slops went into an old Petrofina ship - and gas freed alongside before drydocking in Siberia Dock.

So yes Ise Maru could have been going up to drydock.

@Manfred

That means that the location is not Welcome Point in Schulau

Gerolf, I just sent you a (not to be posted) photo of the ISE MARU, which clearly shows the same funnel markings lay-out as the ship in your picture.

I agree with you folks, it is definitively not Sansinena,
I habe found a photo of her in my collection, the superstructure in the middle is completely different.
Unfortunately a cannot post it, as I do not own the negative only the b/w foto.
Gerolf

@Cisco: With HDW and Blohm & Voss two excellent yards on hand with big floating docks available, could be, why not. Checked my yard sources, but no info about repair arrivals though.

Manfred, it could mean that she is outbound from the BP(?) refinery at Wilhelmshaven after discharge. Why would she be going up to Hamburg in ballast?

@miraflores: means what?

The Elbe river is at Welcome Point in Schulau at least 1-1,5 km wide, the horizon/background in this photo is at least 5 km away.

So when do we see the change of the title to ISE MARU-IMO 5164198 being clearly identified by the Tanker King (Pieter) and little ol´ me?

Hi Cisco,
unfortunately I have only 2 negatives of that vessel and when I scanned the negatives I only found Sansinena during that time, but there are missing vessels. Unortunately you cannot read the name of that vessel because of the light against that vessel. the 1971 Sansinea it could not be, at that time no more ships with that look a few still which bridge midships, but mainly Chinese vessel.
Gerolf

Gerolf, I'm thinking that somwhere in your collection yo may have a photo of Sansinena labled as Ise Maru :)
I have an LSI here that has Sansinena departing Kharg Island May 14 , 1971, for Wilhelmshaven so she was trading to northern Europe at about that time.
Interstingly it also has a Sansinena II launched at Baltimore May 18, 1971, for the same beneficial owners - Union Oil of Calfornia, very similar tonnage, US flag.

Found this article with a good photo showing that she definitely is not SANSINENA:
https://www.latimes.com/visuals/photography/la-me-fw-archives-the-oil-tanker-sansinena-explodes-in-los-angeles-harbor-20181002-htmlstory.html

LSI has Ise Maru departing Europort May 7th 1971 for the Persian Gulf.

A 13th. Dec 1971 copy of LSI records the ISE MARU as sailing from Tobruk on Dec 4 for Finnart which puts her in the frame geographically. It also records the SANSINENA as sailing from Ras Tanura on Nov 20 for Savona.

Best Regards
Tom

Manfred, point taken, however, the picture was taken in 1971 and the picture of the ISE MARU that I have, shows the funnel I was describing below. So I was wrong, is it not the Kapetan, but the ISE MARU under her original name.

Pieter, when I put "or possible sister" it gives me time to look it up to make sure she has or not or from another yard.

Manfred, the ISE MARU had no sister....so Kapetan Markos NL is what we are looking for.

Looks like KAPETAN MARKOS N.L., IMO 5164198 or possible sister:
www.fotoflite.com/components/com_virtuemart/shop_image/product/348335.jpg

But which tanker, if not the Sansinena ??
That is, what I noted, when I was young and took this foto with an old camera.
Gerofl

Cisco, you are absolutely correct. The funnel markings here seem to show two white bands at the top and the bottom, and something circular on the darker section between the bands. She is definitely one of the larger ships of that era, but not the Sansinena.

Mistaken identity? The Sansinena that blew up had a foremast and two goalposts in line abreast along with a quite different bridgefront. I thought something didn't look right.

One of three sisters , two of which met sad ends.
Her sisters were Torrey Canyon and Lake Palourde.

Among the largest tankers of her vintage, but unfortunately exploded in California in December 1976, killing 9 crew members.