For the amount of money a cracker — that’s right, a baked wafer of dough — is on the block for at an upcoming auction (October 24) of rare Titanic, Hindenburg and related memorabilia, you’d think a romantic dinner date with Kate Winslet (or Leonardo DiCaprio, depending on your preference) would come along with it.
It’s not just any old cracker, however (although it is old). It’s a cracker that was recovered by James Fenwick, a “passenger on the RMS Carpathia that helped hundreds of Titanic survivors who had escaped the sinking ships on lifeboats” — according to the website Boing Boing.
What are they asking for the tiny, crumbly treat? $18,000.
This from the auction’s description:
This Spillers and Bakers Pilot biscuit formed part of the survival kit in a Titanic lifeboat and was kept as a souvenir by the Fenwicks. To the best of our knowledge its the only example to have survived. 3½ins. x 4ins.
It is sold in a photographic envelope with original notation from Mr Fenwick, “Pilot biscuit from Titanic lifeboat April 1912.”
Don’t forget the cheese. Something soft and spreadable would suffice.