Pocket Watch Recovered From Titanic Sells For Over $120,000
A pocket watch belonging to a postal clerk aboard the RMS Titanic has sold for over 120,000 USD, according to the BBC.
The watch belonging to Oscar Scott Woody has a symbolic value. It is frozen at the time he fell into the cold North Atlantic when the ship sank on 14 April 1912.
The symbolic watch was recovered from the ocean and returned to the clerk's wife, Leila, the following month.
The watch was sold at Henry Aldridge & Sons auction house in Devizes, along with other memorabilia from the ship.
Objects Recovered From Titanic Sold At Auction
It seems Titanic memory is still alive and collectors do prise the objects that remind them of the people who had the unfortunate to travel on the doomed ship without knowing that death is what's expecting them.
So, a first-class menu sold for over USD 62,000, and a first-class passenger list for over USD 50,000. The passenger list belonged to a gambler named George Brereton, who was boarding transatlantic ships to try to make money. Instead, he found death.
"He's put stars next to the names of the wealthiest people. There's one in particular, Charles Hays, who owned the Grand Pacific Railroad in America; a very wealthy chap. Brereton has written in block capitals below his name, 'MILLIONAIRE'," auctioneer Andrew Aldridge told BBC Radio Wiltshire.
Another item that fetched an important sum was an ornate dessert plate that sold for USD 24,000 and a section of a column from the a la carte restaurant sold for USD 28,000.
Henry Aldridge & Son is known for selling items recovered from the Titanic. In 2017, they auctioned a fur coat that belonged to a first-class flight attendant for USD 184,000. In the same year, a letter from Oscar Holverson, a passenger on the Titanic, sold for USD 155,000.
About Titanic
The Titanic, in full Royal Mail Ship (RMS) Titanic, was a British luxury passenger liner that sank on April 14–15, 1912, during its maiden voyage, en route to New York City from Southampton, England.
Of the 2,240 passengers and crew on board, over 1,500 persons perished that day. One of the most famous tragedies in modern history, it inspired numerous stories, and several films, including the 1997 "Titanic" movie starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio.
Photo Credit: HENRY ALDRIDGE & SON
