The gold pocket watch of John Jacob Astor, one of the richest men of the era who lost his life in the sinking of the Titanic, was auctioned today by the UK-based auction house Henry Aldridge and Son as part of a collection called Titanic and Transport Memorabilia.
The gold watch was valued at approximately 190 thousand dollars at the auction, where many mementos from the Titanic, such as a violin, a wallet and a pair of cufflinks, were sold.
John Jacob Astor (47) was among the richest people in the world with a fortune of 87 million dollars in the economic conditions of the period.
According to eyewitness accounts, in the events that began on April 14, 1912 when the Titanic hit an iceberg, Astor was seen putting his wife on the rescue boat and chatting with another person on deck while waiting for his turn.
Astor's lifeless body was pulled from the water seven days later and identified by the initials embroidered on the lapel of his jacket, as was customary at the time.