Violin played in heartbreaking ‘Titanic’ film scene to be sold for £60,000 at auction

9 April 2025, 12:13

The violin that accompanied one of Hollywood’s most devastating scenes is to be sold at auction.

The violin played as the Titanic ship sinks in the Hollywood film is expected to sell for £60,000 at auction.

Amid the chaos of the sinking ship, a string quartet plays the hymn Nearer My God To Thee, before violinist and actor Jonathan Evans-Jones says the famous line “Gentleman, it has been a privilege playing with you tonight”, as the characters see a rush of water heading towards them.

Evans-Jones portrayed Wallace Hartley, the bandmaster on the Titanic who died alongside seven of his bandmates in 1912 when the Titanic sank.

He sold the violin, made by Nigel Harris, in 2013 and to a private collector since.

Read more: What was the violin hymn played at the sinking of the Titanic?

(TITANIC 1997) Violinist Scene, Nearer To My God Thee

The original violin that was allegedly played to calm passengers on the Titanic as it sank was sold for £900,000 in 2013.

Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said: “Having sold the original violin that was played by Wallace Hartley when the Titanic sank on 15 April 1912 in 2013 for £1.1 million, we are delighted to offer the violin that was played in James Cameron’s movie for auction, one of the highest grossing movies of all time.

“This is a true piece of movie history that will appeal to both Titanic and movie memorabilia collectors – it’s a true cross-collectible.”

Read more: The miracle 110-year-old violin that survived the sinking of the Titanic