Original Ledger For The Insurance Policy On The Titanic To Be Auctioned In New York

April 23 Sale Also Features a Rare 1883 Record Book of American Football's Earliest Years

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Apr 17, 2013, 04:22 ET

NEW YORK, April 17, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- An important relic of nautical history will be auctioned on Tuesday, April 23 in New York. The original ledger page of the insurance policy taken out on the Titanic by the Atlantic Mutual Insurance Company will go on the block at Doyle New York, one of the world's premier auctioneers. Estimated at $30,000-50,000, the insurance policy was written on behalf of the Oceanic Steam Navigation Company Limited, better known as The White Star Line.

(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130417/NY96749 )

The document states that the steamer Titanic is "on risk" with Atlantic Mutual from March 30, 1912 until March 30, 1913. The Titanic sank on April 15, 1912, less than a month after the policy went into effect, with a tragic loss of over 1,500 souls.

Atlantic Mutual undertook $100,000 of the risk in the Titanic. The balance was covered by a syndicate of insurance companies led by the Prudential Insurance Company in London. Therefore, the risk for the full insured value of $5 million was spread among many firms.

The April 23 auction also features an important sporting book by Walter Camp, known as the "Father of American Football." Dated 1883, Foot Ball Records of American Teams chronicles American football's earliest years and the first season of play using Walter Camp's rules. Under these new rules the game evolved from its origins in English rugby into a uniquely American sport. The book lists the players and scores of teams from Yale, Harvard, Columbia and Princeton, which first adopted the rules. This rare volume is estimated at $5,000-8,000. The only other located copy is in the Library of Congress.

For fans of boxing is an original stadium poster from the 1975 "Rumble in the Jungle." This historic match in Zaire pitted Muhammad Ali against George Foreman in what has been called "the greatest sporting event of the 20th century." Ali knocked out Foreman to regain the title of Heavyweight Champion. Signed by both Ali and Foreman, the poster is estimated at $5,000-8,000.

Also noteworthy is a group of eighteen original drawings by famed children's illustrator Maurice Sendak for his first book, the 1947 Atomics for the Millions. The drawings are estimated at $30,000-50,000.

The exhibition is open to the public on April 19-22 at Doyle New York, located at 175 East 87th Street in Manhattan. The fully illustrated auction catalogue may be viewed online at DoyleNewYork.com. Interested bidders may call Doyle New York at 212-427-2730.

SOURCE Doyle New York