Los Angeles, California – A piece of wood that became famous for keeping Titanic’s Rose alive has been sold for a staggering $718,750 in an auction. The debate among fans about whether the floating wood panel could have accommodated both Rose and Jack, her love interest, has been ongoing since the release of the 1997 film.
The auction, which featured props and costumes owned by Planet Hollywood, saw the iconic piece of debris fetching a high price. In the blockbuster film, Jack, played by Leonardo DiCaprio, sacrifices himself in the freezing Atlantic after insisting that the panel was only big enough for Rose, portrayed by Kate Winslet.
Addressing the controversy surrounding the size of the panel, the listing for the auction mentioned that the prop measures approximately 8 feet long and 41 inches wide. The panel, often mistaken for a door, was inspired by debris salvaged from the actual Titanic tragedy in 1912.
Other notable items in the auction included the whip from “Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom,” which sold for $525,000, and a Spiderman suit worn by Tobey Maguire, fetching $125,000. An axe used by Jack Nicholson in “The Shining” to hack through a door sold for the same amount.
The auction, which concluded on Sunday evening, raised a total of $15.68 million, marking it as one of the most successful sales of a prop and costume collection to date. Joseph Maddalena, from Heritage Auctions, noted that there were numerous bidding wars throughout the event, showcasing the immense interest in these iconic Hollywood memorabilia.