Belfast, April 18, 2026
A life jacket worn by a survivor of the Titanic disaster has been sold at auction for approximately €609,000, marking one of the highest prices ever paid for an artifact from the historic shipwreck.
The life jacket belonged to Laura Mabel Francatelli, the secretary of fashion designer Lady Lucy Duff Gordon, who survived the sinking on April 15, 1912, aboard lifeboat number one. The item, signed by Francatelli and other survivors after their rescue, had previously been exhibited at the Titanic Museum in Belfast.
Historical Significance of the Artifact
The life jacket is one of the few surviving personal items directly linked to a named passenger from the Titanic. Francatelli, who worked closely with Lady Duff Gordon, was among the 705 survivors of the disaster, which claimed the lives of approximately 1,500 people. The jacket’s provenance, including its signatures from fellow survivors, adds to its historical value.
Other Titanic artifacts were also sold at the auction, including a lifeboat cushion that fetched around €356,000. The sale highlights the enduring fascination with the Titanic, whose story continues to captivate collectors and historians more than a century after the ship’s sinking.