An 18-carat gold Jules Jürgensen pocket watch was the headline item at a Henry Aldridge & Son’s auction on 22 November in England. It sold for £1.78 million ($AUD3.48 million), setting a record for the auction of RMS Titanic memorabilia.
The pocket watch belonged to US business magnate Isidor Straus, who was one of approximately 1,500 people who died when the ship sank on 15 April 1912.
According to survivor testimony, Isidor was offered a place on a lifeboat but refused because women and children remained on board.
His wife, Ida Straus, elected to stay on board the ship with her husband as it sank, and is quoted as saying, “I will not be separated from my husband. As we have lived, so we will die, together."
Eyewitnesses reported seeing the couple standing arm in arm on the deck as the RMS Titanic sank. Andrew Aldridge, managing director of Henry Aldridge & Son, said that more than 100 years after the tragedy, it continues to capture hearts and minds.
“Some of the prices seen at this sale indicate the continued fascination with this amazing story,” Aldridge said.
“Pocket watches are incredibly personal items. Every man, woman, and child passenger or crew had a story to tell, and they are told 113 years later through the objects that they owned.
He added: “Items like this keep the story alive and bring us closer to the memory of one of the biggest tragedies of the 20th century.”
Late last year, Tiffany & Co. purchased an 18-carat gold pocket watch with ties to the RMS Titanic and the brand's heritage. Three survivors commissioned the piece as a symbol of gratitude to the captain of the passenger ship RMS Carpathia, which rescued more than 600 passengers.
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