It was the key that could have saved Titanic from the disaster in 1912.The simple piece of metal was for a locker that stored a pair of binoculars in the crow’s nest to look out for dangers in the distance,including icebergs.
But,a sailor called David Blair forgot to leave behind the key as the ship set off for it’s maiden voyage.Without it,his shipmates were unable to open the locker and thus the collission with the iceberg and the disaster,which ended up killing 1,522 persons.
Nearly 95 years later,the key which had the potential to save the luxury liner is up for auction,along with a postcard from Blair telling of his disappointment of not being on the voyage.
Blair was the second officer in charge of the crow’s nest and the auctioneers,not 100% sure,believe it’s the key for the binoculars locker.Few minutes before the Titanic started it’s voyage,Blair was taken off the ship and in haste to leave the ship, he carried the key with him.
Interestingly,a year after the Titanic disaster, Blair was awarded a gallantry medal for saving life at sea. While on board the liner Majestic he jumped into the Atlantic to rescue a crewman who had fallen overboard.
Blair kept the Titanic key as a memento and eventually passed it on to his daughter Nancy.
On August 22nd,the key together with the postcard fetched 90,000 pounds in an auction.
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