Laura Mabel Francatelli accompanied the Duff Gordons on their voyage to New York aboard Titanic. They were all in one of the first lifeboats to leave the ship, carrying a paltry total of only twelve people aboard. Upon embarking the rescue ship Carpathia, Francatelli asked the other survivors in the lifeboat to sign her lifebelt as a souvenir. Some of the signatures have sadly faded, but eight of them can still be read.  

Above left, the front; middle the back; left, the inside back.

Here the Fosbery maker’s stamp can be seen. At the back are some signatures visible.
Lifebelt images Paul Burns - Pigeon Forge / Branson Titanic Museum Attractions

As well as the autographs, the Francatelli lifebelt also has some superbly preserved stamp markings. Most other known lifebelts do not show these markings. Research shows, however, that they may have had the same stamps when manufactured, but the imprints have simply faded away much like in the case of Mrs. Astor's lifebelt.

After Francatelli’s death in 1967 her lifebelt was bequeathed to her nephew, son of Mabel’s younger sister Dorothy Francatelli. Interestingly, Dorothy was one of Lady Duff Gordon's models.  

In May 2007 Francatelli’s lifebelt was sold at Christie’s auction house for £60,000 ($118,643 in 2022) the highest price paid for any Titanic lifebelt to date. It was brought by an anonymous bidder.  

Miss Francatelli, pictured here third from the right in a photograph taken aboard Carpathia, showing some occupants of Lifeboat No. 1 taken by Carpathia’s doctor who had an interest in photography. The photo was taken when the Boat 1 group was reassembled a couple of days after the rescue, the survivors put their lifebelts back on for the occasion. This day the crew received their checks towards their new kits.

Left to right, standing: George Symons, Frederick Sheath(?), Lucy  and Cosmo Duff Gordon, Laura Francatelli, Abraham Salomon, Charles Hendrickson.

From left to right, seated: Robert Pusey(?), Edward Horswell, Samuel Collins,  James Taylor(?).

-Daily Sketch, London, May 21^st, 1912 - Randy Bryan Bigham collection.