* Rapping Below
Deck *
One of the oldest
stories involves a rapping or hammering sound. Rumors of workmen
trapped in the hull apparently circulated around the ship, but later
explanations would of course include the warping of the inferior
steel/iron.
* The Mummy's Curse
*
Some claim that
among the more valuable items in the cargo hold, was the cursed mummy
or sarcophagus (sometimes identified as Princess of Amen-Ra, or
artifact no. 22542), who having caused the deaths of many involved
with her, took the ship to the depths. Truth is artifact no. 22542 is
actually the coffin lid of a Priestess of Amun, which William Stead
and Douglas Murray wrote a ghost story about, before Stead went down
with the Titanic. His mummy ghost stories then became entangled with
survivors' other stories. The lid itself is still sitting in the
British Museum. Amen-Ra, by the way, is just another variant name of
Ra/Amun-Ra, the ancient Eygptian sun god (there's a link to the
wikipedia page for him in the resources list below, encase you're
curious).
* Other Ghosts *
Several ghost
stories surround the artifacts recovered from the titanic.
Apparitions and paranormal activity are supposed to plague museums
that host them. Temperature drops, moving portraits, EVPS, ghostly
touches, and shadow figures, have all been reported.
At least one person claims to have interacted with the ghost of Captain Edward John Smith, the captain of the Titanic, giving him a tour of his ship. However, he is also said to haunt his former home.
Ghost orbs have also been reported over the Titanic's resting place. Submarines in the location have reported communication errors, and even phantom SOS calls.
* Premonitions &
Recognitions *
This entry of
course would not be complete without mention of the various
precognition claims related to the Titanic. Most notable is Morgan
Robertson's “Futility” about the unsinkable SS Titan which bore
many similarities to Titanic, including hitting an iceberg on her
maiden voyage while carrying too few lifeboats, despite being
published in 1898 (14 years earlier). While the book is real, whether
or not it is purely coincidence is up for debate. William Stead is also known to have penned a tale about a White Star Line ship that rescued survivors of another ship after it hit an iceberg. This and his tale about a sunken mail ship have cause many to believe he knew he was to die on the Titanic.
Another claim comes from the helm of Titanian, when in 1939 the helmsman supposedly stopped at the position of the Titanic's wreck on a premonition, at which point a iceberg appeared and struck the hull, causing slight leakage.
Legend also has it that dying young woman interrupted a violinist (Wally) to tell him of her premonition of the massive ship sinking. That night, another violinist (Wallace) went down with the ship.
* Bonus: Interesting Facts *
- Titanic's RMS designation stands for Royal Mail Ship. In addition to passengers, there was a great assortment of cargo being brought across the Atlantic.
- The Titanic was originally designed with enough lifeboats, rumors say the head of White Star did not like the way it looked and ordered the number to be reduced.
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Resources &
Further Reading/Viewing:
“12 Spine-Tingling Ghost Stories About The Titanic” Ranker
(Last modified prior to 2017-03-03)
http://www.ranker.com/list/titanic-ghost-stories
“Amun” Wikipedia
(Last modified 2017-02-17)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amun
Bob Rickard & John Michell. The Rough Guide to Unexplained Phenomena. 2nd Edition. London: Rough Guides Ltd, 2007.
“Cursed Mummy on the Titanic; Did a mummy's curse send the Titanic to the bottom of the ocean?” Snopes
(Last modified 2012-04-12)
http://www.snopes.com/history/titanic/mummy.asp
“Legends and myths regarding RMS Titanic” Wikipedia
(Last modified 2017-01-22)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Legends_and_myths_regarding_RMS_Titanic
“RMS Titanic alternative theories” Wikipedia
(Last modified 2017-02-08)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Titanic_alternative_theories
“RMS Titanic” Wikipedia
(Last modified 2017-02-19)
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/RMS_Titanic
“The Myth of the Titanic Mummy” Unmuseum
( Last modified between 2000 and 2017-02-19)
http://www.unmuseum.org/mummyth.htm
“Titanian - Echo of Titanic” Encyclopedia Titanica
(Last modified prior to 2017-02-19)
https://www.encyclopedia-titanica.org/titanian-echo-titanic.html
“Titanic Mystery” Mysteries at the Museum (series, 2016)
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