The Great Titanic Has Sailed into Web3

Apparently, you can now own a piece of Titanic for as much as $13.
At the 110th anniversary of the tragic sinking, the RMS Titanic Inc. decided to commemorate the famous ship in an unusual way. The ship’s artifacts will be tokenized as NFTs and will continue to live on throughout the world.

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titanic nft

Illustration: Milica Mijajlovic

Who’s sailing the Titanic in 2023?

If you thought the story of Titanic ended with the movie, you’re very wrong. Apparently, for those of you who didn’t know already, there’s a whole company whose sole purpose is to preserve the memory of the famous ship and the people who sailed on it. 

The rights to the wreck of the Royal Mail Ship (RMS) “Titanic” were granted to the company of the same name, RMS Titanic Inc, in 1994 by the US Federal Court. This means they’re allowed to recover the artifacts from the wreck site, which eventually led to the exhibition “Titanic: The Artifact exhibition”. 

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RMS Titanic, Inc. was formed for the purpose of exploring the wreck of Titanic and its surrounding ocean areas; obtaining oceanographic material and scientific data; and using the data and retrieved artifacts for historical verification, scientific education, and public awareness. The Company also records the recoveries, documents, and photographs Titanic in detail, and maintains a comprehensive archive.

Official statement 

Each expedition was uncovering something new since they would introduce a new technology every time. However, the last expedition was conducted in 2010, so more than a decade ago, meaning that there was a huge gap between the last discoveries and the age we live in now. 

Eventually, the team came to the conclusion that artefacts could be tokenized as NFTs and shared with the community, which completely made sense considering how many people Titanic has affected during its long history. 

Moreover, while the exhibition is mostly stationary on one or two locations, NFTs would allow for these pieces of history to reach a wider audience and to open ownership to general public. 

This project is a result of a three-way partnership, between the aforementioned RMS Titanic Inc, Hong Kong-based Venture Smart Financial Holdings, which will be responsible for structuring the tokenization of intellectual property linked to the artifacts, and Web3 firm Artifact Labs, which will create a total of 5,500 NFTs using their in-house blockchain technology. 

What are Titanic NFTs?

The idea of Titanic NFTs isn’t that new.

Around a year ago, RMS Titanic partnered with Crypto.com to come up with the first drawings of NFT coins, which were then airdropped to winners on April 25, 2022. 

Still, they are available for purchase on the official Crypto.com website

Now, what’s interesting is that the coins differ among themselves by the story they’re bearing. 

These are 10 collectibles, which are currently owned by 571 NFT collectors: 

  1. Departure Queenstown – Port where the group of 2nd and 3rd class Irish passengers boarded. 
  2. Collision Sinking – Marks the moment when Titanic sank, in 2.5 hours, after being constructed for four years. 
  3. Iceberg Masaba – Masaba was the last of eight warnings transmitted to Titanic prior to fatal collision. 
  4. Rescue NY – Around 706 survivors arrived at the NY Dock 54 to their family members. 
  5. Iceberg Baltic – The ice warning transmitted to Captain Smith, 5th of 8th total warnings. 
  6. Departure Cherbourg – Port where some of the richest and most famous passengers boarded. 
  7. Collision Lifeboat – The first lifeboat left the ship around 12.40 am. 
  8. Departure Southampton – The main port from where most passengers boarded. 
  9. Collision Impact – When Titanic collided with the iceberg, in only a few seconds there was a series of deformations in her lower starboard side hull plates. 
  10. Rescue Carpathia – Carpathia arrived only four hours after receiving the signal, but unfortunately it was one hour too late because Titanic has already sunk. 

As you may have noticed, each of these coins carries a story, an important moment or location crucial in Titanic’s history. People who are in some way related to each of these points, will probably want to take part in ownership and connect with those who share a similar experience. 

The price of coins starts at $13, whereas the most expensive ones go up to $50. 

Moreover, the team announced that they will release a selection of pictures and videos taken of the Titanic, 2 ½ miles beneath the ocean’s surface which will be auctioned on Crypto.com, too. 

But the story doesn’t end with purchasing NFTs and becoming a part of Titanic’s Web 3 community, for there is a whole plan of events ahead, with exhibitions, seminars with historians, and more. 

Moreover, Artifact Labs will be entitled to create a DAO, which will allow the members of the community to propose future initiatives and exhibitions. Other than that, Titanic DAO will have a say in educational programs, documentaries, research and partnerships, whereas their share of ownership will allow them to share their thoughts on preservation and exhibition of recovered artifacts. 

A journalist by day and a podcaster by night. She's not writing to impress but to be understood.

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