Titanic violin draws skepticism from Titanic Historical Society

Detailed records were made of all of the personal effects found on each body brought to Halifax.

SPRINGFIELD - The report that a water-stained violin on the auction block was played by the doomed bandmaster of the Titanic as the ship sank is raising suspicion at the Titanic Historical Society in Indian Orchard.

Bandmaster Wallace Hartley’s violin was believed lost in the April 15, 1912 disaster, but British auctioneers Henry Aldridge & Son say an instrument unearthed in 2006 has undergone rigorous testing and proven to be Hartley’s.

According to The Daily Mail, the violin was in a leather valise recovered with Hartley's body. It was given to his fiancee and later made its way to a member of the Bridlington Salvation Army. The son of an amateur musician found it in an attic in 2006 and it has undergone testing since then.

Karen B. Kamuda, vice president of the Titanic Historical Society, said she does not believe Hartley's violin was ever recovered at sea. Detailed records were made of all of the personal effects found on each body brought to Halifax, she said.

She cited “Records of Bodies & Effects Recovered by Cable Steamer Mackay-Bennett from S. S. Titanic,” which contains a listing of items found with Hartley's body. It lists  a fountain pen, diamond ring,  cigarette case and even the coins in Hartley's pocket, but not a violin or leather valise.

“Every February or March as the anniversary nears, there will be an article in the Daily Mail or Telegraph and it gets picked up the wires like this – a supposed Titanic artifact is found and its provenance can be interpreted very loosely,” Kamuda said.

In 2007, Aldridge & Son gained media attention for offering the key believed to have fitted the locker that contained the binoculars for the crow's nest.

The auction house says it spent the past seven years and thousands of pounds determining the violin’s origins, consulting numerous experts including government forensic scientists and Oxford University.

The violin will go on display at Belfast City Hall, less than a mile from where the Titanic was built.

The Titanic struck an iceberg on its maiden voyage, resulting in the death of 1,517 passengers and crew.