'Antiques Roadshow': Titanic collection worth a small fortune

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'Antiques Roadshow': Titanic Collection Worth A Small Fortune
'Antiques Roadshow': Titanic Collection Worth A Small Fortune


On "Antiques Roadshow," we went back to 1999 when a man brought in a collection of diary entries, letters and photos that he inherited from his grandparents, who were on the ship that rescued the Titanic.



That ship was the RMS Carpathia, and it is known as the only ship that was able to rescue any survivors from the icy North Atlantic waters on the catastrophic evening of April 15, 1912. While the ship is a footnote in the story of the Titanic, the grandparents' collection was appraised for some serious money.

The appraiser said, "I would say that in terms of what the Titanic stuff has been selling for and whether the market is going to continue like it has been, $50,000 ... $75,000 for all of this stuff. It wouldn't surprise me at all."

According to History.com, RMS Carpathia had been taking journeys across the Atlantic for decades before the Titanic sank, but it actually ended up sinking as well. The ship was torpedoed by German troops during World War I -- five passengers were killed and the rest were successfully rescued.

And as Encyclopaedia Britannica notes, the Carpathia was built by Swan and Hunter for the Cunard Line. Construction of the vessel began on September 10, 1901 and the ship was launched on August 6, 1902.

If you're itching to get your hands on your own piece of Titanic history, get ready to stretch your budget: the last letter from the Titanic sold earlier this year for $200,000.

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