What did you miss?
Antiques Roadshow expert valuer Hilary Kay encountered a supposed rowlock from one of RMS Titanic’s 20 lifeboats during the latest episode.
Brought to her by a lone gentleman at Beaumaris Castle, she was informed that he’d found the ornamented relic in the garage of the house he’d recently bought, with no proof of its authenticity.
Although thrilled to see such a potentially historically significant piece infront of her, Kay regrettably cast it aside as a “mystery”.
What, how and why?
“When I woke up this morning I can assure you I didn’t expect to see this, which is a brass rowlock on a board which says ‘TITANIC LIFEBOAT NO.3.’ So I have to ask you, which member of your family was on the Titanic and obviously survived?” she said, to which the Roadshow guest explained the situation.
“Uhh, none of us!” he replied. “We recently purchased a house in Llandudno last year and as we [were] sifting through the house we came across this in the corner of the garage really.”
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Kay went on to reveal that this particular lifeboat could’ve held 65 passengers, yet only between 36 and 38 individuals were counted when the RMS Carpathia picked it up in the North Atlantic Ocean in 1912.
The Titanic’s lifeboats were subsequently transported to The White Star Pier in New York, where they remained for six months after the infamous maritime disaster before being dispersed.
“Wouldn’t it be wonderful if I could categorically say that this is from Lifeboat No.3 on the Titanic?” continued the specialist. “And if it was, we could be talking about in excess of £50,000 for value.
“Although there’s probably some fairydust sprinkled over it we can’t say it for sure, so I’m afraid we’ve got to leave it out there as a mystery as to where it ultimately came from.”
Did viewers believe it was the real thing?
Reacting to this interaction via social media platform X (formerly Twitter), one Antiques Roadshow fan rather mercilessly shared: “It’s not from the titanic, mate. Bin it.”
“Mass produced Titanic lifeboat item copy,” echoed another person.
“If we could prove this was from the Titanic, it would be worth in excess of £50k, but we can’t. So it’s not”
What a rollercoaster for that guy #AntiquesRoadshow
— Cath 🏴 (@Cathaclysmal) December 8, 2024
Bloke could be sitting on £50,000, could be a dud, coz they can’t confirm if it was on a lifeboat from the Titanic#AntiquesRoadshow
— Jonsta (@Jonsta1990) December 8, 2024
Antiques Roadshow airs Sundays on BBC One at 8pm.
