Titanic Survivor's Letter Sells for $399,000

A letter written by Titanic survivor Colonel Archibald Gracie has sold at auction for an astonishing $399,000, far exceeding its expected price. Gracie penned the letter aboard the Titanic just five days before its tragic sinking in 1912.

In the letter, Gracie described the Titanic as a 'fine ship' but added that he would 'await my journey's end before I pass judgment on her'. This statement proved eerily prophetic, given the ship's fate. The letter's high value is largely attributed to this remarkable sentence.

Gracie survived the disaster by clinging to an overturned lifeboat. He later wrote a book about his experiences on the Titanic. The letter's sale demonstrates the enduring public fascination with the Titanic's story and its passengers.