About
This toy pig is one of the little known survivors of the Titanic. It belonged to Edith Rosenbaum (1879-1975) who brought it with her on the fateful voyage in 1912.
The pig had been given to Edith by her mother after she had been involved in a road accident. Her mother hoped the little toy would help Edith to recover. Inside the pig there is a little music box which would have played a tune when you wound its tail.
When the Titanic began to sink Edith was very scared and reluctant to evacuate the ship. In order to encourage her one of the sailors grabbed her pig toy out from under her arm and threw it into one of the life boats. Edith later said that
‘when they threw that pig, I knew it was my mother calling me.’
Things to think about:
- Why might Edith have been reluctant to get on the lifeboats?
- Do you think Edith’s mother really believed the pig would have helped her recover?
- Do you know any other objects that relate to the Titanic?
Museum's description
This little pig would have played a tune when you wound its tail. It belonged to Edith Rosenbaum (1879–1975.) In 1912 she survived the sinking of the Titanic when she was just a little girl. The musical toy was a gift from her mother to help her recover from a road accident and it helped her a second time when a sailor on the Titanic encouraged her to get into a life boat when it was sinking by throwing it in first. He said “say you; you don’t want to be saved? Well I’ll save your baby.”
Teacher notes
Royal Museums Greenwich have created some teaching resources around the objects in their collections which relate to the Titanic. You can find a Pocket Watch, the Lucky Pig toy as well as one about Edith’s Slippers.
They have also put together this RMS Titanic: Fact Sheet which is great for introducing students to the facts and figures of the ship and its voyage.
Date
Between 1906 and 1911.
More details
Medium: Papier Mache, Wood, Animal Skin, musical mechanism
From
National Maritime Museum - Royal Museums Greenwich
