Titanic and its sister ship Olympic were part of the White Star Line, both advertised as unsinkable; however, during the sailing of Titanic on its maiden voyage on 15th April 1912, disaster struck when the vessel hit an iceberg.
Some 113 years after this tragedy, there is still much interest, both with academics and collectors, prices driven by the latter.
Really, the interest and collecting of anything connected with Titanic is very big money today.
Earlier this year, a letter, sent by a survivor of Titanic and posted prior to the disaster, to a certain Archibald Gracie, was sold for the first time, with an estimate of £40,000 – £60,000; it made £230,000; such is the demand for this material.
The spin-off continues for anything that is connected with the White Star Line, especially that of Olympic, which suffered no disaster; named items such as dinnerware, keys, cutlery, anything with a name on, is an object which is very much collected.
Again, this had nothing to do with the disaster of Titanic, but because of the linkage of the two vessels, under the same ownership, it has a spin-off.
Much demand is driven by the competition from the United States, which also has serious collectors, prepared to invest in anything Titanic.
There were three opportunities for members of the crew and passengers to post items from Titanic, prior to the disaster; first, before they left Southampton, then when Titanic passed through Cherbourg and Queenstown in Ireland, where postings could be made; anything that can be related to this vessel and the tragedy, be it a postcard or any artefact known to survive, can make any owner a very wealthy person; sad as the whole subject may be.
Letter sent by a survivor of the Titanic (Image: Mike Hicks) The fact that items surrounding the White Star Line and Titanic, especially, are now so valuable today makes me believe that somebody is going to try and fake items.
And there are probably very few people in the country who can with certainty appraise something to say whether it is genuine or not.
But I would recommend there be hesitation before you purchase anything for a high value that is linked to this shipping line, without seeking expert advice first.
Artefacts that have come from either vessel have been studied and looked at in great detail by many learned people and it is just as well to countenance their opinion before you part with any real money.
You certainly would want to know the background, the paper, the ink, anything that could verify its provenance needs to be looked at very carefully.
When items are sold through auction or from a recognised dealer you have some redress, should it be found to be not as it was stated when bought.
But if you are buying from a private individual occasionally they can mysteriously evaporate after a sale and therefore I would be doubly careful with items of such high value and such rarity.
However, I wish you happy hunting; have a look through those old postcard albums and photograph albums in case there is a member of the family who perhaps was on one of these vessels and sent a postcard back home. That could be quite a lucky find.
Happy hunting.
Our thanks to Henry Aldridge & Son for courtesy of the image.