The Patek Philippe John Jacob Astor IV Wore on the ‘Titanic’ Can Soon Be Yours

It’s only fitting that the wealthiest man aboard the Titanic (and one of the richest people in the world, at the time) carried a Patek Philippe pocket watch. And now the once-in-a-lifetime treasure from the Ship of Dreams can join your own horological collection.

John Jacob Astor IV’s 18-carat gold Patek is heading to the auction block in April via Freeman’s. Also up for offer is a 14-carat Battin & Co. pencil that belonged to the business tycoon, who was known for founding the St. Regis, among other real-estate and hospitality endeavours. Both heirlooms have been in possession of the Astor family for more than 120 years—until now, of course.

As the story goes, Astor and his wife, Madeleine, hopped aboard the Titanic in France, after they had spent time abroad on their honeymoon, just days before the ill-fated 833-foot ship sank in April 1912. In the aftermath of the Titanic’s collision with an iceberg, the New York magnate helped his pregnant spouse aboard a lifeboat; once he was told women and children were to board the vessels first, he calmly said goodbye and stayed on deck as the evacuation proceeded, according to the disaster’s survivors, Freeman’s says. Days after the ocean liner sank into the Atlantic, a cable ship recovered Astor’s body, along with personal trinkets such as the pocket watch, gold cuff links, a diamond ring, and the pencil.

Astor had originally bought the Patek pocket watch back in 1904 from Tiffany & Co. in New York City, complete with his engraved monogram on the caseback. The timepiece, sitting around around 44 mm, is home to a 129029 manual movement and a white-enamel dial (where you can catch a glimpse of the Tiffany & Co moniker). Upon its retrieval, the memento (as well as the pencil) was given to Astor’s son, Vincent, who wore the watch until his death in 1959. From there, Vincent’s wife Brooke, owned the pocket watch until her death in 2007; the trinket was then passed to Brooke’s son Anthony, before finally landing in the hands of Charlene Marshall, Anthony’s wife. Now, it’s Charlene’s estate that is offering up the heirlooms. The Patek is expected to fetch from US$300,000 to US$500,000 at auction, while Astor’s gold pencil could garner an estimated US$10,000 to US$20,000.

“These are among the most powerful personal artifacts connected to the Titanic,” Reginald Brack, SVP, Head of Department, Watches, at Freeman’s said in a statement.

Though the pocket watch will now be well-ingrained in the Titanic lore, the timepiece also shows a slice of Tiffany & Co. and Patek Philippe’s history, too. The American retailer began selling watches from Patek back in 1851, and a formal partnership was forged in 1854, according to Phillips. Since then, the brand has embarked on many endeavours together, including the highly coveted Nautilus with a Tiffany blue dial, which hammered down for a bonkers US$3.2 million at auction in 2022. Given its provenance, Astor’s Patek may cause its own ruckus on the block when the sale begins on April 22 in Freeman’s Chicago location—especially since a previous timepiece owned by the businessman hammered down for a record US$1.5 million in 2024, the most expensive piece of ‘Titanic’ memorabilia ever.

Lead image: Freeman’s

This story was originally published on Robb Report USA.