The violin believed to have been played by the bandleader on the Titanic while the boat sank in 1912 has sold at auction for over $1.7 million.
The violin was reportedly just one of the many artifacts salvaged from the Titanic wreckage to be sold at UK auction house Henry Aldridge and Son. And, collector Craig Sopin, who helped authenticate the instrument, believes it is the artifact from the Titanic that has gone for the highest price.
“This figure is going to be hard to beat… I can’t think of anything else that is more iconic to come off that ship,” Sopin said.
Survivors have said that Wallace Hartley, the man who owned the violin, and his band played during the chaotic evacuation of the sinking ship to keep the passengers as calm as possible. The violin was found a few days after the ship sunk strapped to Hartley’s body. It was reportedly returned to his fiancé, Maria, who had bought him the violin as an engagement present. It reportedly resurfaced in 2006.
Also available at the auction was the violin prop used in the 1997 film Titanic, directed by James Cameron. The film recreated Hartley’s violin playing as the boat sank with Jonathan Evans-Jones as Hartley playing “Nearer My God To Thee.”
– Olivia Truffaut-Wong
Get Uinterview's FREE iPhone App For Daily News Updates here.
Get the FREE Uinterview iPad app here and watch our videos anywhere.
More on Titanic:
Plus-size model Tess Holliday fired back at critics who question her anorexia diagnosis. In a TikTok video,…
President Joe Biden mocked Donald Trump for suggesting Americans inject themselves with bleach during the Covid-19 pandemic. "And remember…
Farrar described the ongoing bird flu outbreak as a "global zoonotic animal pandemic," and called…
During the 2024 April NFL draft, the new Chicago Bears quarterback revealed his girlfriend, Alina Thyregod,…
Israel has enforced a complete lockdown in Gaza, and has prevented the entry of essential…
BAlthough he did not provide a specific timeline for the potential debate, it marks the…