Pocket Watch from Titanic Victim to Be Auctioned in the UK

ondon, 16 April 2025 (BSS/AFP) – A pocket watch recovered from the body of a Danish passenger who perished in the Titanic disaster is among several poignant relics set to go under the hammer in the United Kingdom later this month.

The gilt silver and brass timepiece belonged to Hans Christensen Givard, a second-class passenger who was among the more than 1,500 souls who lost their lives when the RMS Titanic struck an iceberg and sank in the freezing North Atlantic in the early hours of 15 April 1912.

Givard, aged 27 at the time of the tragedy, had been journeying to the United States with two friends, all of whom sadly perished. His body was one of the relatively few recovered and was subsequently interred in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, on 10 May 1912 — a city that became the final resting place for many Titanic victims.

Among his personal effects were a savings book, a compass, a set of keys, some cash in a wallet, a passport, and the now-famous pocket watch. Remarkably preserved, the timepiece’s mechanism ceased at the moment icy waters engulfed its owner and the ill-fated liner.

Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge of Henry Aldridge & Son commented: “The watch’s movement is frozen in time at the very moment the cold Atlantic claimed both its owner and the most iconic passenger ship in maritime history.”

The items were originally returned to Givard’s grieving family shortly after the disaster. Now, over a century later, his descendants have made the decision to part with the watch, which is expected to fetch in the region of £50,000 at the 26 April auction.

Also featured in the sale are other haunting artefacts from the doomed voyage. These include a letter and medal that belonged to first-class Swedish passenger Erik Gustaf Lind, and a rare third-class ticket used by Ernest Portage Tomlin, along with a silver dollar certificate. Both men, like Givard, died in the tragedy.

Adding a cinematic twist to the auction is the violin used by the bandleader character in the 1997 Hollywood blockbuster Titanic, a film that rekindled global fascination with the disaster. That instrument, symbolic of the real-life musicians who famously played as the ship went down, is tipped to fetch up to £60,000.

The auction offers a rare and emotional glimpse into one of the most harrowing maritime tragedies in modern history. With each item comes a story frozen in time, preserving the memory of those who never reached their destination.