A gold pocket watch belonging to a passenger who died in the Titanic disaster has been sold for £1.78 million.

Isidor Strauss and his wife Ida were among the 1,500 people who died when the Titanic hit an iceberg on April 14, 1912. The ship was sailing from Southampton to New York. 

Strauss' body was recovered from the Atlantic Ocean a few days after the accident. An 18-carat gold Jules Jorgensen pocket watch was found with him. 

The watch had been preserved by Strauss' family. It was sold on Saturday at Henry Aldridge & Son Auctioneers in Devizes, Wiltshire. Strauss was an American businessman, politician and co-owner of New York's Macy's department store. 

After the accident, his wife refused to stay on the lifeboat. She said she would rather die with her husband than live apart from him. Ida Strauss wrote a letter while on the ship. The letter, written on Titanic stationery, has also been sold for 100,000 pounds.