Mark VII
Member
To make Titanic’s story more tangible, I have purchased a few items that help me get closer to the ship and its passengers. I'm curious if others do the same and what items they cherish? To break the ice, I'll share my small collection with a brief explanation for each item. I'd love to hear and see your prized possessions!
From right to left:
- Newspaper from October 17, 1912, with coverage of Titanic's sinking.
- Calendar with best wishes for 1912.
- Gordon's Gin mineral water bottle. According to an eyewitness account by Jack Thayer, cited in the book A Night to Remember (1955) by Walter Lord, an unnamed passenger "drained" a bottle of Gordon's Gin, surviving the sinking. Both label and registration number on bottle correspond with the year 1912.
- Apollinaris mineral water bottle. In the eyewitness account (1912) of his voyage on Titanic, Francis M. Browne refers to a bottle of Apollinaris Water on the dining table in the First Class Dining Saloon.
- Coal from Titanic. The only object allegedly present during the sinking. The piece of coal inside the coin is said to have been recovered in 1994.
- A 1903 Waltham Riverside pocket watch. This watch is similar to the one John Jacob Astor wore aboard Titanic. It was in his pocket when CS Mackay-Bennett recovered his body. I identified the exact model based on photos in this article.
- Fork German army from 1939. Obviously too 'young' for Titanic. Still taken along because Titanic: Adventure Out of Time creates a fictional link between Titanic and National Socialism in Germany.
- Vest Pocket Kodak, model A (1912-1914). It’s unknown which make and model of camera Francis Browne used for his famous Titanic photo's, but the often mentioned Vest Pocket Kodak can almost certainly be ruled out. The contact prints in Browne's photo album have a different aspect ratio than the negatives produced by a Vest Pocket Kodak. Mr. Davison, the curator of Browne's photos, confirmed in an email to me, and previously in The Titanic Commutator Issue 200, that Browne must have used a much larger quarter plate camera. Browne even refers to 'plates' in a photo caption. If you still wish to own a Vest Pocket Kodak, the original model that came out in April 1912 (another reason why it’s unlikely that Browne used one) can be recognized by its smooth back without the lid for the so-called autographic function, and by a round indentation below the lens to ‘stop’ the aperture adjustment knob.
- Kodak No 1A, special, model D (1911-1912). Model camera with which Jack Odell was photographed on Titanic's deck by his paternal aunt Kate Odell and by Francis Browne. If Jack has taken any photos with the camera, they have not been preserved. The model is indicated on the inside of the flap that closes the film house.
- Kodak Brownie 2A, model A (1909-1911). Camera model with which Bernice Palmer aboard the Carpathia took photos of the rescue operation and icebergs on the horizon. You can recognize the correct model by the perforated washer in the shutter mechanism and the text on the metal film cassette on the inside.
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