Titanic's Valuable Coal
Investing In Titanic's Coal
On April 11th 2012, the world marked the 100th anniversary of the tragic sinking of the R.M.S. Titanic. Back in 1912 the unthinkable happened when the unsinkable Titanic hit an iceberg and sank. This day went down in history, and there have been many television shows and movies about this ill fated cruise. Years back there's was a television show about an expedition that recovered artifacts from the ocean floor where the Titanic rested. They recovered all sorts of things that went into a traveling museum. They also recovered coal, which can't be considered an artifact because it's not made by humans. They wouldn't sell the belongings of the passengers or pieces of the ship to the public, but a decision was made to sell pieces of the coal to finance the recovery cost. So I decided that this would be a great investment, and I bought my piece of history.
My piece of coal sits on a black plastic base with a square mirrored glass on top, with a brass metal plate engraved with "R.M.S. Titanic". The coal is covered by a plastic cube open on the bottom to cover the base. It is really sharp looking, and a great conversation piece. It came with it's own certificate of authenticity from R.M.S. Titanic, and it also comes with it's very own registration number. My name is also listed among contributors, which is suppose to be apart of a traveling museum of the Titanic's artifacts. I've never had an opportunity to visit this museum, and years later I highly question it's value as an investment. A matter of fact on the right day, you could probably pick up this exact piece at any given flea market around the world.
Recently at an Ebay auction I spotted my exact piece of coal fetching a high bid of $3.75, which was a steal. There were only five bids on this particular piece of Titanic coal, and it appeared as though there weren't going to be any more bids before the auction closed. Other internet auctions for the same type of Titanic coal showed similar results. I purchased my little piece of coal from the 1994 Titanic research and recovery exhibition, and I don't remember exactly what I paid for it. I'm not joking either, I really don't remember that far back. I saw a full page color advertisement for the coal in a "USA Today" newspaper, and I filled out the order form and mailed them a check, which included shipping charges. I believe I paid somewhere around twenty to thirty dollars for my coal, so my investment is definitely in the red.
Now as far as an investment, I don't think I would recommend this to anyone else. Maybe for a long term investment of a hundred years or so, but nothing that we'll see a return in our lifetime for. I'm completely satisfied with my little piece of April 11th 1912 Titanic coal, and if something ever happens to it, then I know now that I can purchase a cheap replacement for it over the internet. I wouldn't worry about them running out of coal either, because they can always make the pieces smaller to sell more of them. I know my little chunk of coal that was once 4,000 feet beneath the sea is safe now. It's some where up in the attic of my house, and maybe someday I'll find it once again.
