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6 January 2012 Last updated at 17:28

Titanic relics up for auction

Almost 100 years after the Titanic ocean liner was sunk by an iceberg on her maiden voyage to New York, artefacts retrieved from the ship are about to go to auction.

The items being sold range from jewellery and accessories belonging to wealthy first class passengers to a waistcoat from one of the passengers on the lower decks. Here, Arlan Ettinger, president of Guernseys Auction House, speaks at a preview exhibition of the items to be auctioned

This pure gold link bracelet with the name Amy spelled out in diamonds is the subject of much discussion among Titanic enthusiasts. There were a number of Amys on board the liner, but some have suggested the bracelet may even have been a gift for someone not on the ship when it went down

Valued in 2007 at $189m (拢121m), the items will be sold by Guernsey Auctioneers in New York on 15 April.

The collection of 5,500 items, to be sold as a single lot, were recovered over seven expeditions to the North Atlantic wreck between 1987 and 2004. This chandelier decorated the first class smoking room

The seller, RMS Titanic, is the only company legally allowed to retrieve objects from the Titanic's wreck site. This odd-looking device is actually one of the ship's portholes

This waistcoat was worn by William Allen, a machinist who was emigrating from Britain to the US. Alexandra Klingelhofer from Premier Exhibitions described some of William's other possessions: "He had a rather exciting cravat, it was paisley and red and a polka-dot handkerchief. So I think he had fun with life."

This logometer would have been used to indicate the Titanic's speed

Potential bidders for the collection, for which individual items have not been listed, will be selected through an application process that is open until 1 April. This picture shows part of the ship's telegraph system

RMS Titanic's president, Christopher Davino, said: "We expect to identify a buyer capable of serving as a proper steward of the collection and the wreck site, while continuing to build upon the work that RMST and its partners in the oceanographic and archaeological communities have accomplished."

Final sale to any bidder must be eventually approved by a federal court judge in the US state of Virginia, according to a filing for the auction lot at the US Securities and Exchange Commission submitted on 23 December.

A second-class baggage tag and eyeglasses

This 17-ton section of the RMS Titanic's hull is the largest piece in the collection

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Titanic relics up for auction

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