Titanic violin to go on display next year at 2 U.S. museums
KANSAS CITY, Mo. >> A sea-corroded violin believed to have been played by the bandmaster of the Titanic as the ocean liner sank is headed to two U.S. museums next year where it will be displayed publicly for the first time since its sale set a record.
An anonymous buyer paid $1.6 million for the instrument during a 2013 British auction. Survivors of the Titanic have said they remember the band, led by Wallace Hartley, playing on deck even as passengers boarded lifeboats.
The violin will be on display from March 7 to May 29 in Branson, Missouri, and from June 5 to Aug. 14 in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. The museums claim to house some of the largest permanent collections anywhere of Titanic artifacts and memorabilia.