Titanic Survivor’s Life Jacket Fetches Over $900,000 at Auction

LONDON – At a recent auction, a life jacket worn by a passenger who survived the tragic sinking of the RMS Titanic fetched an astounding 670,000 pounds ($906,000).

The life jacket, once worn by Laura Mabel Francatelli, a first-class passenger who escaped the ill-fated voyage on a lifeboat, bears signatures from her and fellow survivors.

This notable artifact was the highlight of a Titanic memorabilia auction held by Henry Aldridge & Son in Devizes, western England. The life jacket significantly surpassed its presale estimate of 250,000 to 350,000 pounds, ultimately going to an anonymous bidder who participated via telephone.

Another remarkable sale at the event was a lifeboat seat cushion, which was acquired for 390,000 pounds ($527,000) by the proprietors of two Titanic museums located in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee, and Branson, Missouri.

The auction prices mentioned include the buyer’s premium, a standard fee added to the sale price.

“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.

Billed as the world’s most luxurious ocean liner and described as “practically unsinkable,” the Titanic hit an iceberg off Newfoundland during its maiden voyage from England to New York. It sank within hours on April 15, 1912. Some 1,500 of the 2,200 passengers and crew died.

The Titanic is still a subject of worldwide fascination, in part because of the range of passengers aboard the ship, from paupers to plutocrats.

Francatelli was traveling with her employer, fashion designer Lucy Duff Gordon, and Lucy’s husband Cosmo Duff Gordon. All three survived in the ship’s lifeboat No. 1, which was launched carrying 12 people despite having capacity for 40. Its failure to pick up survivors from the frigid water became a source of controversy.

The record auction price for a piece of Titanic memorabilia is 1.56 million pounds (almost $2 million at the time) paid in 2024 for a gold pocket watch given to the captain of RMS Carpathia, the ship that rescued 700 Titanic survivors.