Gold watch worn by richest passenger aboard Titanic to be sold at auction

[JohnS]

If you know your history, then you may be aware that the richest passenger that went down with the Titanic was John Jacob Astor IV. Well, after a little over a hundred years his gold watch is about to be auctioned...

Gold watch worn by richest passenger aboard Titanic to be sold at auction

By Emily Blumenthal, CNN

John Jacob Astor IV's pocket watch is expected to fetch between $125,000 and $188,000. Henry Aldridge and Son Ltd

CNN  — A gold watch worn by John Jacob Astor IV, a member of the wealthy Astor family and the richest man aboard the Titanic, will go up for sale at an auction of memorabilia from the doomed ship.

Astor was one of around 1,500 people who died when the Titanic sank on April 15, 1912 after hitting an iceberg. His pregnant wife, Madeleine, survived.

The watch is among a number of notable items on offer at auction house Henry Aldridge & Son in Wiltshire, England, on Saturday, including the valise that held the violin famously played by the band leader as the ship sank, and a pocketbook that documents the Titanic’s scheduled voyages. The violin itself was sold for $1.7 million via the same auction house in 2013 and is the highest-selling item from the ship ever.

The valise belonging to Titanic bandmember and orchestra leader Wallace Hartley, which held the violin he played as the Titanic sank, is also for sale. Henry Aldridge and Son Ltd

The watch is expected to sell for between £100,000 and £150,000 ($125,000-$188,000) and the valise for between £100,000-£120,000 ($125,000-$150,000), according to Andrew Aldridge, the managing director of auction house Henry Aldridge & Son. Bidding begins on April 27 at midday local time (7 a.m. ET), Aldridge told CNN.

The watch was among the personal effects found with Astor’s body after the Titanic sank, according to the auction house. He also had gold cufflinks, a diamond ring, money and a pocketbook on him, among other items.

After the recovery of Astor’s body, those possessions were sent to his son, Vincent Astor, who completely restored the watch so that it worked. In 1935, Vincent gave the watch as a christening gift to the infant son of William Dobbyn IV, John Jacob Astor’s executive secretary, according to the auction house.

Aldridge told CNN that the Dobbyn family kept the watch until the late 1990s, when it went to auction.

An unnamed collector in the United States bought the watch at this auction and is the current seller. Since then, it has been displayed in several museums.

“So, you know, over the course of its time, quite literally millions of people have viewed it, which is fabulous,” Aldridge said.

John Jacob Astor IV’s cufflinks and plan of the Titanic’s first-class accommodation are also on offer at Saturday’s auction. The cufflinks are expected to sell for between £5,000 and £8,000 ($6,250-$10,000) and the accommodation plan for between £20,000 and £30,000 ($25,000-$37,500).

Source: https://edition.cnn.com/2024/04/26/style/john-jacob-astor-watch-titanic-scli-intl-gbr/index.html

[BrightonCorgi]

All things Titanic are popular in my home town. I know they guy who discovered the Titanic and grew up with his kids. 

[westg]

Fascinating stuff. A little sad items like these don't stay within the original family owners . I guess some people sell their souls for a few bucks. 

[MrBirdman]

3 hours ago, westg said:

Fascinating stuff. A little sad items like these don't stay within the original family owners . I guess some people sell their souls for a few bucks. 

I feel the same way, but everything has its price I guess. Fortunately for me the family heirlooms aren’t very valuable. There is something to be said for selling things to people who will take care of them. Roberto Clemente’s family sold a lot of his key memorabilia/rings, some of which were purchased by a family member of mine. He’s stayed in touch with the family actually - they were permanently loaning the items to museums and felt like they might as well transfer ownership and get some money out of it (ball players then made nothing compared to today). 

[JohnS]

2 hours ago, MrBirdman said:

I feel the same way, but everything has its price I guess. Fortunately for me the family heirlooms aren’t very valuable. There is something to be said for selling things to people who will take care of them. Roberto Clemente’s family sold a lot of his key memorabilia/rings, some of which were purchased by a family member of mine. He’s stayed in touch with the family actually - they were permanently loaning the items to museums and felt like they might as well transfer ownership and get some money out of it (ball players then made nothing compared to today). 

Oh man...and it is Roberto Clemente we're talking about, after all! What a legend of the game of Baseball!

[NSXCIGAR]

Watch sold for €1.175M.

https://www.bloomberg.com/en/news/thp/2024-04-27/titanic-watch-sells-for-record-breaking-1-175-million?embedded-checkout=true

[MrBirdman]

16 hours ago, NSXCIGAR said:

Watch sold for €1.175M.

https://www.bloomberg.com/en/news/thp/2024-04-27/titanic-watch-sells-for-record-breaking-1-175-million?embedded-checkout=true

What’s remarkable is that everyone is apparently relying on the family’s claim this is the watch that was recovered. Presumably he owned several. All we know for sure is that his body was recovered with one. But I suppose all that matters is that most people believe it’s legit.