Two sinking ships...

The last letter to be written on the Titanic was sold for £119,000 at auction yesterday.

The letter was written by survivors Esther Hart and her seven-year-old daughter Eva just eight hours before the ship hit an iceberg and sank back in 1912. The husband of Esther and the father of Eva died when the ship sank. The letter only survived because it was in the pocket of Esther’s husband's coat which he gave her to keep warm.

Titanic memorabilia is big business and the fascination with the disaster never seems to stop. A menu from the day of the disaster was sold for £76,000, while a violin played as the ship sank went for £900,000; and if you can’t afford the real thing then you can buy a reproduction Titanic memorabilia pack on ebay for a few quid. There are dozens of Titanic memorabilia collectors all scrabbling for bits and pieces of historical grief.

Of course it’s not just the Titanic. Bits of the First and Second World Wars, Belsen, Pompeii, and any number of tragedies from the past are sold by auction houses. It seems that other people’s misery is a real money spinner.

With the recent South Korea ferry disaster, a ship crammed with hundreds of teenage students, I wonder if in years to come there will be memorabilia of this disaster for sale. If so what will it be; boarding passes, the belongings of the students, the pictures taken by the dying kids on their phones jut minutes before they drowned? Or, in lieu of letters written on Titanic letter-headed paper, will it be the text messages sent by the dying students to their parents?

I hope not. These are so sad and harrowing.

Shin Young-Jin: "Mom, I'm sending you this now because I'm afraid I might not be able to say it later. I love you."

Mother: "Why..? I was wondering why you weren't checking the messenger ..."

Mother again when no reply: "I love you too, son."

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Student: "Dad, don't worry. I'm wearing a life vest and am with other girls. We're inside the ship, still in the hallway."

Father: "I know that the rescue is under way, but shouldn't you be waiting outside the rail? Try to get out if you can."

Student: "The ship is too tilted. The hallway is crowded with so many people."

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Student to parent: "There are few people on the ship, can't see a thing, it's totally dark. So there are few men and women, women are screaming and we are not dead yet, so please send along this message."

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The father of teenager Shin Seong-hee: "I know the rescuers are coming but why don't you try to come outside?"

Shin: "No – I can't move because it is tilted too much. Moving is more dangerous."

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Student to parent: "I am alive; there are students alive, please save us quickly."

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Student to a group chat entitled 'Theatre Club': 'Love you all for real. Looks like we really are gonna die. If I've wronged any of you, forgive. Love you guys.'

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Brother of victim: 'Keep calm, don't panic, take your time, stay sharp, and do as they say. Just act fast as they tell you to. When data works contact me again, your brother.'

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Student: "The ship ran into something and it's not moving. They say the coast guard just arrived."

Brother: "Don't panic. Just do what you are told to do and then you will be fine"

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Thank God there weren’t mobile phones on the Titanic and maybe it's best that they don't find any wreckage from Flight MH370.