Keystone
A gold watch found on the body of the Titanic’s richest passenger has sold at auction for 1.175 million pounds (1.350 million francs), a record for an item linked to the famous ship, according to British auction house Henry Aldridge & Son.
The sum, paid by an American buyer, exceeds the estimate of 100,000-150,000 pounds published before the sale. This surpasses the previous record for a Titanic artifact at auction, of 1.1 million pounds achieved in 2013 by a violin, according to the same auction house.
Meanwhile, the violin case was sold for 360,000 pounds during the same auction where the precious watch was purchased. Engraved with the initials JJA, the object belonged to the American businessman John Jacob Astorwho died at the age of 47 in the sinking of the Titanic on 15 April 1912.
Considered one of the richest men in the world at the time, with assets of 87 million dollars, which would correspond to several billion today.
The watch has been completely restored
He was described in his last moments smoking a cigarette in the company of another passenger, the American writer Jacques Futrelleboth among the 1,500 deaths on the Titanic.
His body was found on April 22, 1912, along with his 14-karat gold pocket watch.
“The watch was completely restored after being returned to the family of John Jacob Astor” and worn by his son, making it a unique piece of the history of the Titanic and one of the most important pieces in the “history of watchmaking”, underlines the house of auctions.
SDA
