SUNKEN TREASURES
TITANIC RELICS RECOVERED FROM OCEAN
FLOOR, BUT STORIES BEHIND THEM
REMAIN LOST AT SEA
By Lou Carlozo
Tribune Staff Writer
February 15, 2000
I saw "Titanic" twice, and each time I couldn't help
thinking: "Wouldn't it be cool to look at that wreckage up
close? To see stuff from the ship? To learn more about
the 1912 disaster that claimed more than 1,500 lives?"
Until I dive under the Atlantic, I'll settle for "Titanic: The
Exhibition." It opens Friday at the Museum of Science
and Industry in Chicago.
KidNews got a sneak peek at the exhibit, which includes
more than 200 items from the ship. It's the largest
gathering of Titanic artifacts ever assembled (more than
4,000 items have been recovered since 1987).
Seeing these items, buried more than 80 years at sea, was
a voyage in itself on the seas of time -- and a journey into
the imagination. All sorts of questions about the
passengers and the tragic events bobbed to my mind's
surface. Here's what I saw and experienced:
RECOVERED RELICS: Many of Titanic's passengers
were rich. In today's dollars, some first-class passengers
paid the equivalent of $50,000 a ticket! Although personal
items recovered from the ocean liner hint at their owners'
wealth, the stories behind them were lost at sea.
Of course, there's no "Heart of the Ocean" necklace like
Kate Winslet wore in the movie. But I did see a gold
chain with heart-shaped pendant. The precious stones
have lost their glow (all those years under the water have
turned them a dull gray). But the gold is still shiny,
indicating that it's of very high quality, said Bernhard le
Beau, a Titanic exhibit conservator.
"I'm used to handling things that come out of wrecks," le
Beau said as he opened a crate for me and unwrapped
the necklace. "But this is so much more personal. Many
of these items actually came out of suitcases."
Other items I saw included a luggage tag, a beat-up
bowler hat (it was found squashed), a gold fox hat pin (its
ruby eyes still glowing red) and a clarinet. Did a Titanic
musician play it as the ship went down, I asked? Nobody
knows, le Beau said.
THE INCREDIBLE HULL: Some of Titanic's smaller
pieces, such as the ship's thermometer and logometer
(used for tracking distance traveled), have turned copper
green from sitting underwater so long.
A pair of binoculars I saw had suffered the same fate.
Did the binoculars come from the bridge -- and could they
have saved Titanic from hitting the iceberg? Again, that's
a mystery that went down with the ship.
But for sheer size and wonder, nothing beats the 13-ton
hunk of Titanic's hull. Measuring 13 by 20 feet, it's the
largest piece of the Titanic to have been recovered.
I watched workers hoist it into the museum by crane, and
it's creepy seeing this black slab of history up close. A
porthole window, probably from a first-class cabin, is half
intact. I wondered how frightened the occupants were
when they heard the ship was sinking, and whether they
were among the nearly 700 survivors.
DREAMBOAT STAIRCASE: There's also a recreation
of Titanic's grand staircase, which will be familiar to
anyone who has seen the movie. Crafted from the original
blueprints, the staircase has a wrought-iron skylight,
winding banisters and carved woodwork. It's quite
impressive.
In fact, about the only thing missing is Jack Dawson, Leo
DiCaprio's "Titanic" character. But for Leo's female fans,
it won't be hard to picture Jack waiting at the top, looking
hunk-like in his borrowed tux. Or to pretend that you're
Rose. Sighhhhhh.
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"Titanic: The Exhibition" runs Feb. 18 through Sept. 4 at
the Museum of Science and Industry, 57th Street and
Lake Shore Drive, Chicago. The self-guided tour costs
$10 for ages 12 and up; $8 for ages 3 to 11. The museum
is open from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. weekdays, 9:30 a.m. to
5:30 p.m. weekends. Call 773-684-1414 for more
information, or purchase tickets on-line at
www.msichicago.org. |
