Overview
- The life jacket, sold Saturday at Henry Aldridge & Son in Devizes, fetched £670,000 ($906,000) after estimates of £250,000 to £350,000.
- It was worn by first-class passenger Laura Mabel Francatelli and bears signatures from fellow occupants of Lifeboat No. 1, a boat launched with 12 of roughly 40 available seats.
- Reports differ on the buyer of the life jacket, with some outlets citing an unidentified telephone bidder and others naming the Titanic Museum Attraction.
- A lifeboat seat cushion sold for £390,000 to the owners of Titanic museums in Tennessee and Missouri, who plan to put it on public display, while a gold pocket watch from victim Frederick Sutton made about £180,000.
- The strong prices, which include buyer’s premiums, underscore sustained demand for rare Titanic items, even as the 2024 Carpathia captain’s watch sale at £1.56 million remains the auction record.