Titanic violin found: More than 100 years after the sinking of the Titanic, the violin played by a bandmaster was reportedly found.
A U.K. auction house on Friday claimed it found the violin played by the band leader on the Titanic, according to reports.
The band apparently kept playing on the deck of the vessel as it was sinking in 1912 and as passengers were getting into lifeboats, those who survived the incident recalled later.
Auction house Henry Aldridge & Son said it discovered the violin played by bandmaster Wallace Hartley, reported The Sun newspaper.
The water-stained and cracked violin was located in 2006, but it wasn’t until Friday that auctioneers said it belonged to Hartley, who died in the accident, according to The Associated Press.
“It’s been a long haul,” auctioneer Andrew Aldridge told AP. The auction house has spent thousands of dollars and countless hours trying to determine the origin of the violin.
The violin, which has been preserved relatively well, is expected to sell for a six-figure sum.
The researchers also discovered a note from Ms. Robinson, the grieving fiancee of Hartley, dated just after he died and was sent to the Provincial Secretary of Nova Scotia, which said, “I would be most grateful if you could convey my heartfelt thanks to all who have made possible the return of my late fiance’s violin,” according to The Mirror.
According to AP, the violin was apparently returned to Hartley’s fiancee, although it is unclear when. She died of stomach cancer in 1939, according to the Mirror.
And later, the violin ended up in the possession of the Salvation Army before it was handed over to a violin teacher, and later it was handed over to the auction house.
There was also a letter kept with the violin, which shows that a band leader, Major Renwick, passed it to one of his musicians.
“Major Renwick thought I would be best placed to make use of the violin but I found it virtually unplayable—doubtless due to its eventful life,” reads the note, according to The Sun.
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