Titanic memorabilia fetches thousands at auction

The violin reputedly played by the Titanic's bandmaster as the ill-fated vessel sank is the latest item recovered from the "unsinkable" ship to attract huge attention at auction.

Among the belongings on sale in Devizes, Wiltshire today, Henry Aldridge and Son auctioneers will also offer:

• A photograph showing victims being buried at sea - The black and white image of bodies in sacks piled three high on deck was taken days after the tragedy and is expected to fetch up to £5,000

• A menu of the last meal served to first class passengers on board the Titanic sold for £76,000 at auction in March last year. The menu is dated April 14 1912
• A rare first class deck plan belonging to wealthy New York couple Ida and Isidor Straus, who drowned at sea, sold for £30,000 in October 2011

• The world record price for memorabilia from Titanic is believed to have been achieved when a plan of the doomed ship used in the 1912 inquiry was put up for auction. It was bought by a private collector for £220,000 in 2011
• A letter from a first-class passenger on the Titanic fetched £55,000 in 2010