The sanctuary principle embraces the hope that a wreck site will be preserved in undisturbed condition as a memorial to those who perished. This position is similar to a piece of legislation proposed in 1987 by the United States Senate that would have prohibited the importation of Titanic artifacts, including those proposed for use in public exhibitions for profit. 

The recovery principle, in contrast, embraces the hope that appropriate recovery from a wreck site will provide conserved artifacts as a memorial to those who perished. This position is similar to the Titanic Maritime Memorial Act of 1986, enacted by the U.S. Congress and signed into law by President Reagan in 1987. 

The Smithsonian Institution, of which the National Postal Museum is a part, has accepted the “sanctuary principle” that precludes it from accepting or exhibiting any artifacts raised from the wreck of Titanic. However, other historians, scientists, museums, and members of the public feel otherwise. They point to the rapid and irreversible destruction of the ship and its objects as strong reasons to recover and conserve a cross-section of the artifacts to preserve them for viewing by the public long after Titanic has disintegrated. 

All of the artifacts displayed in this exhibition were recovered from the surface of the North Atlantic. 

CAN TITANIC’S MAIL BE DELIVERED?

Titanic’s mail may be one exception to the sanctuary principle. 

The recovery of paper objects from Titanic has raised the expectation that some of the ship’s mail may be salvageable. A leather doctor’s-style valise raised from the wreckage contained jewels and other valuables, including reportedly intact bank notes. Other paper objects, such as letters and newspapers, may have survived after nine decades in the dark and chilly waters of the North Atlantic.

The delivery of the mail is the obligation of the postal system to which it was entrusted. Should any mail sacks be salvaged, the Royal Mail Streamline or the United States Postal Service could take steps to recover and deliver the mail. What to do with any mail that might be brought up from the ship is certain to raise many intricate legal questions. With an estimated 6 to 9 million pieces of mail aboard the ship, distribution of Titanic’s mail nine decades after it sailed would be extremely complicated and require a great deal of dead-letter detective work. The Universal Postal Union is currentlly reviewing these complex questions. 

RMS Titanic, Inc., the publicly held company responsible for the recovery of Titanic artifacts, provided these remarkable video views of the mailroom aboard Titanic. The Smithsonian Institution gratefully acknowledges RMS Titanic, Inc.’s support.

TITANIC PHOTOMOSAIC

Composed of more than 3,000 separate images of Titanic as she rests at the bottom of the sea, this high resolution photomosaic was produced in conjunction with Polaris Imaging as part of the 1998 Research and Recovery Expedition of  RMS Titanic, Inc. Composite images such as this, the first and only such mosaic of Titanic available to the public, help document the rapid and irreversible deterioration of the vessel and provide clues about its sinking.

Courtesy of the James Pehta Collection and RMS Titanic, Inc. Copyright 1998 RMS Titanic, Inc.