A life jacket worn by a passenger who survived the Titanic disaster has sold for more than $900,000 at auction.
The flotation device, worn by first-class passenger Laura Mabel Francatelli as she escaped the sinking ship, sold in England Saturday, April 18, for 670,000 pounds, or about $906,000, according to auction house Henry Aldridge & Son.
The life jacket, signed by Francatelli and other survivors from the same lifeboat, far exceeded its presale estimate of between 250,000 and 350,000 pounds, auctioneers said. It was purchased by an unidentified bidder over the phone.
The item was the centerpiece of a larger Titanic memorabilia sale held in Devizes, located about two hours west of London.
Another artifact from the disaster — a seat cushion from one of the ship’s lifeboats — sold for 390,000 pounds, or about $527,000, to the owners of Titanic museums in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, and Branson, Missouri, according to the auction house.
The final prices include the buyer’s premium, a standard auction fee.
“These record-breaking prices illustrate the continuing interest in the Titanic story, and the respect for the passengers and crew whose stories are immortalized by these items of memorabilia,” auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said.
Francatelli was traveling aboard the Titanic with her employer, fashion designer Lucy Duff Gordon, and her husband, Cosmo Duff Gordon. All three survived in lifeboat No. 1, which launched with just 12 people despite having space for about 40, according to historical accounts.
The lifeboat later became controversial for failing to return to pick up additional survivors from the freezing Atlantic waters.
The Titanic, billed at the time as the world’s most luxurious ocean liner and widely considered “unsinkable,” struck an iceberg during its maiden voyage from England to New York. The ship sank in the early hours of April 15, 1912, off the coast of Newfoundland.
More than 1,500 of the roughly 2,200 passengers and crew aboard the ship died, while about 700 survived.
More than a century later, the disaster continues to capture public attention through books, exhibits, and films — including the 1997 blockbuster “Titanic,” starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio.
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