Rare Titanic Deck Plan To Be Auctioned

Faline · #1 ● 10-16-2011, 10:19 AM

A rare Titanic deck plan owned by an elderly couple in first class who died when the doomed liner sank is set to sell at auction £50,000
Ida and Isidore Straus drowned side by side after Mrs Straus refused a place on a lifeboat to remain with her husband - a scene iconically depicted in the 1997 Titanic film.
The deck plans were only handed out to the 324 first class passengers when they arrived on the ship in Southampton on April 10, 1912.

Thought to be only one of three in existence, the Titanic deck plan that folds down to a booklet, is headed 'White Star Line, Southampton-Cherbourg-New York Service, First Class Accommodation'.It is expected to fetch £50,000 at auction:

It is believed only three of them from the ship exist today, with two in private collections and this one now on the open market.
Witness accounts stated the plan's owners sat on deckchairs and held hands until they were washed into the sea as the Titanic sank.
In the Hollywood blockbuster, starring Kate Winslet and Leonardo DiCaprio, artistic licence was used to show the devoted couple cuddling up together on their bed.
In the emotive scene, Mr Straus gives his wife a kiss on the cheek while their stateroom floods.
The plan was in the possession of the Straus' maid Ellen Bird who survived the disaster in which 1,495 people were lost.
She kept hold of the 41x29in document for the rest of her life and it has now been put up for auction by the current private owner.
Despite its age and fragile condition the delicate piece of tissue paper has remained in one piece over the last 99 years. It has been given a pre-sale estimate of between £40,000 to £50,000.
Andrew Aldridge, of auctioneers Henry Aldridge and Son of Devizes, Wilts, which is selling the plan said: 'This represents the zenith of collectables pertaining to Titanic.
'Isadore Straus was one of the wealthiest people on the ship and original material relating to his and his party's time on board Titanic is practically non-existant.
'To have something directly related to Straus which was on the ship is a collector's dream.
'The Straus' were barely featured in the 1997 movie apart from the very brief but very iconic shot of them lying in bed side by side just as the ship begins to sink.
'Looking at the condition of the deck plan, it must have been stored in a book and kept somewhere dark and out of sunlight.'
The deck plan, that folds down to a booklet, is headed 'White Star Line, Southampton-Cherbourg-New York Service, First Class Accommodation.'
The reverse shows the layout of the top five decks that made up the first class accommodation and facilities like the restaurants, swimming baths, gymnasium and squash courts.
Each room is numbered in red ink and the plan is incredibly detailed, marking out the beds, wash basins and wardrobes inside.
There is still pencilled notations made by Miss Bird who marked with a cross her suit of C97 which was next door to the suite occupied by John Farthing -Mr Straus' man servant who died in the disaster.
Miss Bird's room was directly opposite the Straus' lavish stateroom numbered C55-57 which had its own bedroom and separate sitting room.
The plan also includes several printed photos of some of the onboard facilities as well as a list of them and directions and instructions for the passengers.

Mr Straus, 63, was a wealthy businessman who owned the Macey's department store in New York.
He and his family were returning to America on Titanic following a holiday in Europe.
Their 15-year-old granddaughter Beatrice holidayed with them but stayed on in Germany.
After the 45,000 ton liner struck an iceberg at 11.40pm on April 14, in the north Atlantic many first class passengers were helped into lifeboats.
At first Mrs Straus, 63, joined Mrs Bird in lifeboat eight before getting out to be with her husband, reportedly saying: 'We have lived together for many years. Where you go, I go.'
Her body was never recovered unlike that of her husband.
His last listed effects included black silk socks, gold watch, silver flask and £40 in notes.
Miss Bird, who was from Old Buckingham, Norfolk, died in Rhose Island in 1949 aged 68.
The auction takes place in Devizes on Saturday, October 29.