Titanic's Last Lunch Menu Sold for $88,000

A menu from the last first-class lunch served aboard the RMS Titanic sold for $88,000 at a Sept. 30th online auction. The menu exceeded the auction house’s expectations by selling for $18,000 more than the maximum price of $70,000.

The artifact was rescued from the ship by Abraham Lincoln Salomon, a New York businessman, according to the Associated Press.

Salomon was among a small number of first-class passengers who climbed aboard a lifeboat that was later nicknamed the “Money Boat” or “Millionaire’s Boat” by press due to baseless rumors that one of the passengers bribed crew members to row away from the sinking ship rather than stay to rescue others.

The menu lists an abundance of dishes—like grilled mutton chops and custard pudding—that were available for passengers to eat on April 14, 1912, and is signed on the back in pencil by another first-class passenger, Isaac Gerald Frauenthal.

The New York auction house listed the item for sale from an unidentified person who it said was a descendent of one of the survivors of the boat. The menu sold to a private collector.

A Brief History of New York City Taxicabs

An early electric hansom taxicab on a New York City street, circa 1900. The Electric Carriage and Wagon Company, the first taxicab company in New York City, began operating 12 electric hansom cabs in July 1897—a time when city traffic was overwhelmingly of the horse-drawn variety.

Nathan Lazarnick—George Eastman House/Getty Images

By the 1920s, as demand for autos boomed, industrialists had recognized the potential of the taxi market. Automobile manufacturers like General Motors and the Ford Motor Company began operating fleets of cabs. Here, a New York City yellow cab in 1929.

Museum of Modern Art/AP

Nicknamed the "Sunshine" cab, taxis with a European-style sun roof were put into service in New York, June 19, 1936. The new fleet was the largest single order for new taxicabs in history.

J. Stirling Getchell—AP

The new model taxicab from Chevrolet is shown in New York City, May 17, 1950.

Carl Nesensohn—AP

Taxis drive through the streets of Manhattan near 5th Avenue in New York City, 1972. The vehicles' signature yellow livery didn't become law until 1967, when the city ordered that all licensed "medallion taxis" be painted the same color, in order to cut down on unofficial drivers and make the cabs more recognizable

Everett Collection

The Checker Cab, used between 1956 and 1982, became one of the most recognizable symbols of mid-20th century urban life. Manufactured by the Checkered Cab Company, the iconic black-and-yellow taxi was advertised as a roomy and rugged alternative to the standard American passenger sedan.

Wikimedia Commons

A gas-electric hybrid taxi drives on a street on March 1, 2011 in New York City. In May 2007, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg proposed a five-year plan to switch New York City's taxicabs to more fuel-efficient hybrid vehicles. However, the plan was dropped after operators complained that the cost of maintaining the new cars outweighed the fuel savings. Today, New York City has around 4,300 hybrid taxis, representing almost 33 percent of the 13,237 taxis in service—the most in any city in North America.

Chris Hondros—Getty Images

A Nissan NV200 is unveiled in New York City on April 2, 2012. New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that the vehicle would serve as the city's exclusive taxicab for the next decade. The iconic New York City taxi has gotten a 21st-Century makeover, with low-annoyance horns, USB chargers for passengers and germ-fighting seats to cut down on bad odors. Taxi operators will be required to buy the Nissan NV 200 at a cost of about $29,000 starting in late 2013.

City of New York/Getty Images

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Write to Megan McCluskey at megan.mccluskey@time.com.