A plan to sell artifacts from the Titanic faces US government opposition [View all]
Source: AP
Updated 5:36 PM EDT, June 22, 2026
A plan to auction more than 100 artifacts salvaged from the wreckage of the Titanic — including personal belongings, currency, kitchen items and decor — is facing pushback from the U.S. government, according to newly unsealed court documents. RMS Titanic Inc., the company that owns exclusive salvage rights to the famous wreck in the North Atlantic, wants to sell the artifacts for the first time despite previous agreements to only display them at museums and traveling exhibitions.
Georgia-based RMS Titanic proposed auctioning the artifacts and displaying them on a global tour in four cities, although those locations haven’t been publicly revealed. Court documents filed in the U.S. referenced the company’s plan to sell artifacts including a bronze cherub, a necklace of gold nuggets and a heart-shaped pendant.
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration represents U.S. interests and oversight in the wreck site. The agency contends such a sale would violate RMS Titanic’s legal obligations to the site, according to documents a judge ordered unsealed earlier this month.
In arguing that the auction should be prohibited, the government wrote that the company “does not seek the Court’s approval, does not believe that approval is required, and asserts that it is not restricted in its ability to sell” the artifacts. Representatives for RMS Titanic did not respond to requests for comment Monday. Its attorneys previously said in a federal court filing that the proposed auction arrangement wouldn’t violate existing court orders and agreements about the artifacts.
Read more: https://apnews.com/article/titanic-wreckage-artifacts-auction-government-legal-case-f5f0273b8bbc99b8fd36658fab43afef
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