Gold pocket watch of Jewish Titanic couple could sell for £800,000 at auction
Gold watch of Jewish Titanic victims Isidor and Ida Straus goes to auction after 113 years
A gold pocket watch recovered from an elderly couple who drowned during the sinking of the Titanic is expected to fetch at least £800,000 when it is sold at auction.
Born into a Jewish family in Otterberg, Bavaria, in 1845, Mr Straus emigrated to the US with his family in 1854.
First class passengers Isidor and Ida Straus were portrayed in James Cameron’s 1997 blockbuster Titanic movie as the couple cradling each other as the ship sinks in April 1912, costing 1,500 lives.
The 18-carat Jules Jurgensen engraved watch was recovered from the body of Mr Straus along with other personal effects and returned to his family.
He had been given the watch in 1888 as a gift for his 43rd birthday – the same year he became a partner in New York department store Macy’s.
During the night of the sinking, the wealthy couple made their way to the Titanic’s boat deck.
When Mr Straus was offered a seat on a lifeboat due to his age, he replied that he would not go before other men.
Mrs Straus refused to leave her husband, and they were last seen alive sitting on deck chairs, facing fate by each other’s side. They were among very few first-class passengers to perish in the disaster.
The watch is now being sold by the family of Mr and Mrs Straus at auctioneers Henry Aldridge & Son Auctioneers in Devizes, Wiltshire, later this month.
Also being sold is a letter written by Mrs Straus on Titanic stationery and posted while onboard the ship.
In January 1912, he and his wife travelled on RMS Caronia to Jerusalem before returning to the US via Southampton on the Titanic.
Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said: “The Straus archive is without doubt one of the most iconic Titanic-related collections ever to come to market.
“Isador and Ida Straus are two of the most recognisable figures from the Titanic story, famously pictured in the James Cameron epic Titanic as the elderly couple at the end of the movie, hugging each other in their stateroom as the water envelops them.
“Theirs was the ultimate love story, Isidor epitomised the American Dream, rising from humble immigrant to a titan of the New York establishment, owning Macy’s department store.
“As the ship was sinking, despite being offered a seat in a lifeboat, Ida refused to leave her husband and stated to him, ‘Isidor we have been together all of these years, where you go, I go’.
“Ida even handed her fur coat to her maid, Ellen Bird, as she entered a lifeboat.
“The letter written on Titanic gives a unique snapshot from the eyes of a first-class passenger to life onboard, the watch is without doubt one of the most important Titanic items in existence.
“It has been treasured by the family for over 113 years but now is the time for it to find a new home.”
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