R.M.S. TITANIC: Second-Class passenger Emily Esther Hart nee...

Hammer

£34,000

R.M.S. TITANIC: Second-Class passenger Emily Esther Hart nee Bloomfield's 22ct. Wedding rings both worn on the Titanic and when she was rescued on Lifeboat 14 with her daughter Eva, one of Titanic's most famous survivors. Esther expressed anxiety towards the ship, claiming that the arrogance surrounding it was "flying in the face of God" and that "something dreadful" would happen which would result in it not arriving at New York. As a result of this premonition, she did not sleep at night. Instead, she stayed up every night fully dressed in anticipation of the "dreadful something" to happen. She slept during the day. Because of this, she was awake when the ship struck the iceberg on the night of 14 April and felt a "slight bump". Certain that this was the reason she was uneasy, she asked her husband Benjamin to investigate. According to Eva, he returned and without a word escorted them from their cabin. The Harts went up on deck and Esther and Eva boarded Lifeboat 14, while Benjamin went down with the ship when it sank. Esther and Eva were separated from each other when their boat's occupants were dispersed among several other boats. They were later rescued by the R.M.S. Carpathia. They stayed briefly in New York before returning to England, all hopes of a new life in Canada having died with Benjamin.
Esther and Eva lived in Chadwell Heath, near London, with Esther's parents. Esther Hart died on 7 September 1928, in Romford, London, England at age 65. Both she and Eva always maintained that the Titanic broke in half before sinking, a question that would not be solved until the wreck was found in 1985. Henry Aldridge and Son sold Esther and Eva Harts letter written onboard Titanic for £119000.
The first ring was for Esther's marriage to George Brooke in 1881, he died in 1891. The second when Esther married Benjamin Hart in 1900, Eva being born in 1905. Esther wore both rings all of her life and upon her death in 1928 they passed to Eva who treasured them. As Eva had no children they were passed to her cousin who was interviewed extensively for Eva's biography, a personalised copy of which is included in the lot alongside a collection of family photographs and other material.