An 18-carat gold pocket watch recovered from the body of one of the Titanic’s wealthiest and most high-profile victims, Isidor Straus, has achieved a record-breaking sale price of nearly $2 million (£1.78 million) at auction. Straus, the co-owner of Macy’s department store, perished alongside his wife, Ida, who famously refused a place on a lifeboat, stating she would not leave her husband. The gold Jules Jurgensen timepiece, which was recovered days after the 1912 disaster and returned to the Straus family, is said to have stopped at 2:20 AM, the approximate moment the liner completely sank. The final sale price underscores the intense and enduring global interest in the Titanic and the poignant, human stories of its passengers.