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This particular menu was designed for the first-class passengers on the Titanic. It included exquisite dishes like oysters, tornados of beef, spring lamb, and mallard duck.
This dinner menu was planned for the evening of April 11, 1912.
More than 100 years after the tragic sinking of the Titanic, the dinner menu for first-class passengers made headlines as it went up for auction in England on November 11. Stained with water, the historic menu fetched a staggering 83,000 pounds (roughly Rs 85 lakh), as reported by The Guardian.
The menu, dating back to three days before the ship’s fateful sinking on April 14, 1912, offered a glimpse into the selective dining choices for first-class passengers during the Titanic’s maiden Atlantic voyage. The unseen menu, featuring a White Star logo, lists the culinary offerings on April 11. It included oysters, salmon, beef, squab, duck, and chicken, accompanied by sides such as potatoes, rice, and parsnip puree.
According to historical records, this dinner menu was served on the evening of April 11, 1912, right after the Titanic departed from Cobh, Ireland. The rare piece of paper measures 16 cm by 11 cm.
The auction, conducted by Henry Aldridge & Son of Wiltshire, featured more than just a menu—it unveiled various Titanic artefacts, including a tartan deck blanket. While a paper menu seems like a strange artefact to have survived, interesting stories surrounding it have emerged. Some reports suggest that men onboard might have unintentionally tucked the menu into their jacket pockets. When the Titanic hit the iceberg, they passed on these jackets to their wives, who found themselves on lifeboats. This is how a few menus survived.
The specific menu in question was found in a 1960s photo album once owned by Len Stephenson, a historian in Dominion, Nova Scotia. Len Stephenson was not just a photo album owner but a community historian renowned for preserving historical records.
Andrew Aldridge, the auction house manager said, “I’ve spoken to several museums globally, and I’ve spoken to a number of our Titanic collectors. I can’t find another one anywhere,” as reported by The Guardian.
The sinking of the Titanic is undeniably one of the most profound tragedies in recorded history. The accident occurred on the evening of April 14, as the colossal ship collided with an iceberg. The ensuing impact led to the sinking of the Titanic the following day, resulting in the tragic loss of over 1,500 passengers and crew members. This catastrophic event occurred during the maiden voyage of the Titanic from Southampton to New York.