The Most Expensive Item Recovered from Titanic Is a 2 Billion Won Gold Watch

Final Auction Price of Memorabilia Worn by US Business Tycoon
10 Times the Expected Winning Bid

A gold watch left by John Jacob Astor IV, an American business magnate who died in the sinking of the Titanic in 1912, was sold at auction for ?1.17 million (approximately 2.01 billion KRW).

A gold watch left by John Jacob Astor IV. [Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 27th (local time), AFP and other local media reported that the gold watch worn by Astor IV at the time of the Titanic sinking was sold to an American for ?1.17 million at an auction hosted by the British auction house Henry Aldridge & Son. Astor IV was known as the wealthiest passenger on the Titanic. The auction house explained, "At that time, his net worth was $87 million (about 120 billion KRW), which corresponds to several billion dollars today."

Initially, the gold watch was expected to sell for ?100,000 to ?150,000 (approximately 170 million to 260 million KRW), but the final auction price exceeded the estimated price by ten times. The auction house described the result as "astonishing," adding, "It shows not only the rarity of the artifact itself but also the enduring appeal of the Titanic story. Even after 112 years, we still talk about the ship, its passengers, and crew."

Bloomberg reported that this is the highest price ever paid for an item recovered from the Titanic. The gold watch was found along with other personal belongings such as gold cufflinks, a diamond ring, money, and a notebook when Astor IV’s body was recovered after the Titanic sank.

These belongings were handed over to the family, and Astor IV’s son, Vincent Astor, gave the watch as a baptismal gift in 1935 to the son of William Doheny IV, who was Astor IV’s secretary. The Doheny family kept the watch until the late 1990s. Afterward, an American buyer purchased the watch, loaned it to several museums as an exhibit, and recently put it up for auction.