Titanic lifeboat biscuit sells for 15,000 pounds at auction

Fetching more than 5000 pounds than the expected price.

October 25, 2015 12:23 pm | Updated November 16, 2021 07:23 pm IST - LONDON:

The “world’s most valuable biscuit,” which survived the sinking of the ‘Titanic’ more than a century ago, has been sold at auction for 15,000 pounds, fetching more than 5000 pounds than the expected price.

The cracker was found by James and Mabel Fenwick, who were passengers on board the ‘SS Carpathia,’ which went to the aid of survivors from the ship.

Greek firm bought it

It is understood a Greek company bought it at the auction held at Henry Aldridge & Son in Devizes, Wiltshire.

Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said the Spillers and Bakers Pilot cracker, from a survival kit in a lifeboat, was “the world’s most valuable biscuit,” BBC reported.

Kept as souvenir

The Spillers & Bakers “Pilot” biscuit was kept as a souvenir by Fenwick in an envelope with a note, “Pilot biscuit from Titanic lifeboat, April 1912.”

Also, a photograph purporting to show the iceberg that sank the ill-fated liner sold at the same auction for 21,000 pounds. The picture was taken by a steward on another ship which passed the iceberg.

‘Most collectible and iconic’

Mr. Aldridge said they were among the most “collectible and iconic” Titanic items to be sold.

RMS Titanic had been four days into a week-long Transatlantic crossing from Southampton to New York when the supposedly “unsinkable” ship struck the iceberg on April 14, 1912. The ship sank on April 15, 1912 killing 1,517 people.

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