# Binoculars found in Titanic Crows Nest **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 14, 2012, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480 "2012-01-14T04:50:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Chickenwrangler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chickenwrangler/32/91_2.png) [@Chickenwrangler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chickenwrangler)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/1 "2012-01-14T04:50:04Z")
Was idly browsing through Yahoo news pages and came across this:- Binoculars found in the crow’s nest are seen among artifacts recovered from the RMS Titanic wreck site at a press preview of a Titanic artifact auction at the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum on January 5, 2012 in New York City. On April 11, 2012, the 100th anniversary of the maiden voyage of the Titanic, Guernsey’s will auction the complete collection of more than 5,000 artifacts recovered from the Titanic wreck site. [http://news.yahoo.com/photos/snapshots-1320966603-slideshow/#crsl=%252Fphotos%252Fsnapshots-1320966603-slideshow%252Fsnapshots010612-photo-1325802513.html](http://news.yahoo.com/photos/snapshots-1320966603-slideshow/#crsl=%252Fphotos%252Fsnapshots-1320966603-slideshow%252Fsnapshots010612-photo-1325802513.html) I thought one of the main contributing factors for hitting the iceberg was that the lookouts did not have any binoculars. Whats the straight dope? ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/2 "2012-01-14T05:42:54Z")
> [@Chickenwrangler](#): > > I thought one of the main contributing factors for hitting the iceberg was that the lookouts did not have any binoculars. I thought that it was the foggy conditions that prevented them form seeing far enough ahead, with or without binoculars. Because they were going too fast to see far enough ahead. But I’m surprised that any binoculars were actually found in the crows nest. I would have thought that they would have fallen out when the ship was sinking the 5 miles or so to the bottom. As I recall from the photos, the mast & crows nest is broken, and laying across the deck at the front of the ship. Surely they would have fallen out when it hit bottom, if not before. I suppose they could have been attached with a rope or something, but that must have rotted away by now. ---
**Author:** ![Derleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b9e5f3/32.png) [@Derleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Derleth)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/3 "2012-01-14T05:44:48Z")
Crows big enough to carry binoculars would only qualify as titanic were they especially large. ---
**Author:** ![Francis\_Vaughan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/francis_vaughan/32/3093_2.png) [@Francis\_Vaughan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Francis_Vaughan)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 7:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/4 "2012-01-14T07:15:49Z")
> [@Derleth](#): > > Crows big enough to carry binoculars would only qualify as titanic were they especially large. So would that be an African or European crow? It had to be said. ---
**Author:** ![Fish\_Cheer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fish_cheer/32/17179_2.png) [@Fish\_Cheer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish_Cheer)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/5 "2012-01-14T07:56:00Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > I suppose they could have been attached with a rope or something, but that must have rotted away by now. Well, but if the rope rots away after the stuff has settled down at the bottom, they’re not going anywhere. ---
**Author:** ![JBDivmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b4bc9f/32.png) [@JBDivmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBDivmstr)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 8:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/6 "2012-01-14T08:50:57Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > I thought that it was the foggy conditions that prevented them form seeing far enough ahead, with or without binoculars. Because they were going too fast to see far enough ahead. … The British inquiry regarding the sinking of the RMS Titanic attributed the collision with an iceberg was due solely to excessive speed. The collision was recorded as happening at 11:40 pm on a flat calm sea, with clear visibility. [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking\_of\_the\_RMS\_Titanic](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_the_RMS_Titanic) ---
**Author:** ![Novelty\_Bobble](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/a3d4f5/32.png) [@Novelty\_Bobble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Novelty_Bobble)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 11:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/7 "2012-01-14T11:46:20Z")
I seem to recall that the flat seas and low profile of the iceberg meant that is was difficult to spot (no waves crashing at the base and no silhouette against the sky) and the excessive speed and sluggish steering did the rest. ---
**Author:** ![Alka\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Alka\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alka_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 11:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/8 "2012-01-14T11:49:43Z")
IIRC, the problem was that it was too dark to see very far. I’m dubious that binoculars would have been found in the crows nest. As **[t-bonham@scc.net](mailto:t-bonham@scc.net)** says, anything loose would have fallen out during the sinking. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 12:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/9 "2012-01-14T12:10:09Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > low profile of the iceberg Yea, it seems to be a pretty flat one. See [a photo of it here](http://www.littleclickers.com/titanic_iceberg.jpg), taken a couple days later. Paint scraped off the side of the Titanic is still visible on the iceberg. It seems like the iceberg would have barely come up to the railing on the deck of the Titanic. ---
**Author:** ![Alka\_Seltzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c89c15/32.png) [@Alka\_Seltzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alka_Seltzer)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 12:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/10 "2012-01-14T12:32:20Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > I seem to recall that the flat seas and low profile of the iceberg meant that is was difficult to spot (no waves crashing at the base and no silhouette against the sky) and the excessive speed and sluggish steering did the rest. Yes, that’s right. There was also no moon that night. ---
**Author:** ![JBDivmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b4bc9f/32.png) [@JBDivmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBDivmstr)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/11 "2012-01-14T13:03:30Z")
> [@Novelty\_Bobble](#): > > I seem to recall that the flat seas and low profile of the iceberg meant that is was difficult to spot (no waves crashing at the base and no silhouette against the sky) and the excessive speed and sluggish steering did the rest. I think that you’re absolutely correct about the ‘flat seas’=‘no waves crashing’ part, the lack of a visible moon probably contributed to the accident also, as far as visibility is concerned. But in the end, IMHO the excessive speed was the _ **main** _ cause of the accident. Check my link. The photograph of the iceberg that was presumed to have been the one that was hit by the Titanic, doesn’t look to be all _ **that low** _ of a profile. > [@Alka\_Seltzer](#): > > … I’m dubious that binoculars would have been found in the crows nest. As **[t-bonham@scc.net](mailto:t-bonham@scc.net)** says, anything loose would have fallen out during the sinking. **t-bonham** _ **also** _ said, > [@](#): > > I suppose they could have been attached with a rope or something, but that must have rotted away by now. . FWIW, I’m wondering if there might have been a “pocket” or cubbyhole of some sort, specifically for the storage of a pair of binoculars? (And on that note, why are binoculars referred to as a _ **pair** _ of binoculars?) The crows nest looked like it needed a pretty good ‘climb’ to get there. I would think that making that climb with a pair of binoculars hanging from one’s neck wouldn’t be all that desirable. The ‘crow’s nest’ is for looking into the distance, as far as possible or necessary. Seems to me, you would want to insure that an aid to do so is always handy. Common sense and simple logic would dictate (to me) keeping the binoculars where you _ **need them to be** _, would it not? _ **WHY** _ take them down, if someone else is just going to have to bring them _ **BACK UP** _?! ---
**Author:** ![JBDivmstr](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b4bc9f/32.png) [@JBDivmstr](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JBDivmstr)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 1:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/12 "2012-01-14T13:07:56Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Yea, it seems to be a pretty flat one. See [a photo of it here](http://www.littleclickers.com/titanic_iceberg.jpg), taken a couple days later. Paint scraped off the side of the Titanic is still visible on the iceberg. It seems like the iceberg would have barely come up to the railing on the deck of the Titanic. WOW! That doesn’t look _ **anything** _ like the pic in the WIKI article. 😕 I guess it’s possible the iceberg ‘rolled’ sometime during the interval between pictures. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 1:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/13 "2012-01-14T13:14:38Z")
If you google Titanic and binoculars, you can find a ton of stories claiming the lookouts didn’t have them, and that lack contributed to the collision. So I would agree with the OP – this is a pretty big mystery. ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 1:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/14 "2012-01-14T13:21:54Z")
\ As an aside, in English, we use the word ‘pair’ quite unusually. Pair of glasses, pair of pants, pair of binoculars. But not pair of bras. \ I agree. This is intriguing. I must assume that the binoculars were in some pouch or framework attached to the crow’s nest and that they stayed in place even when the ship went down. Assuming, of course, that this isn’t all silliness. ---
**Author:** ![Fish\_Cheer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/fish_cheer/32/17179_2.png) [@Fish\_Cheer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish_Cheer)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 1:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/15 "2012-01-14T13:32:55Z")
> [@Gagundathar](#): > > \ > As an aside, in English, we use the word ‘pair’ quite unusually. > Pair of glasses, pair of pants, pair of binoculars. > But not pair of bras. > \ Among your examples, the “pair of binoculars” is uniquely tautological. The “bi-” prefix already says that there are two of something. ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/16 "2012-01-14T13:34:43Z")
> [@Chickenwrangler](#): > > I thought one of the main contributing factors for hitting the iceberg was that the lookouts did not have any binoculars. Well, that proves it. The Titanic didn’t hit an iceberg. – 1912 Truthers ---
**Author:** ![Gagundathar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a183cd/32.png) [@Gagundathar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gagundathar)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 1:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/17 "2012-01-14T13:42:17Z")
> [@Fish\_Cheer](#): > > Among your examples, the “pair of binoculars” is uniquely tautological. The “bi-” prefix already says that there are two of something. Yes. You should logically expect 4 oculars when using the phrase. ETA: Hey! Maybe we should call it a quadocular. Then we would say ‘bring that quadocular to me’ or ‘I took my quadocular up to the crow’s nest’. ---
**Author:** ![mack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b19c9b/32.png) [@mack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mack)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 3:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/18 "2012-01-14T15:09:09Z")
> [@Chickenwrangler](#): > > I thought one of the main contributing factors for hitting the iceberg was that the lookouts did not have any binoculars. > > Whats the straight dope? Maybe some guys were sent back up to look for passing ships. ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/19 "2012-01-14T17:13:04Z")
From [“Unsinkable”: The Full Story of the RMS Titanic](http://www.amazon.com/Unsinkable-Full-Story-RMS-Titanic/dp/0306811103/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1326560337&sr=1-2) (one of the better books on the subject I’ve come across) on the passage between Southampton and Cherbourg: > [@](#): > > Likewise the crew were going about the business of establishing a shipboard routine. Down on D Deck the masseuse, Maud Slocombe, was busy collecting the odd beer bottle or half-eaten sandwich left behind in the Turkish Bath by the shipyard workers. George Symons, one of the ship’s lookouts, approached Second Officer Charles Lightoller, with a more serious concern. > > “Yes, Symons, what is it?” > > “Sir, we have no lookout glasses in the crow’s nest.” > > “All right, I’ll look into it directly.” Lightoller quickly made inquiries as to the whereabouts of the missing binoculars, but was unable to bring Symons good news. The glasses could not be found. When Symons told this to his fellow lookouts, there was considerable consternation: the White Star Line hired men specifically for the post of lookout, rather than simply rotating deck hands to lookout positions, and to these men binoculars were necessary for their job. Several of the _Titanic_’s lookouts had sailed on the _Olympic_, where the glasses were stored in a special locker in the crow’s nest, and the omission on the new ship didn’t sit well with them. > > Actually, the binoculars were aboard, but nobody knew it at the time. There had been a last-minute reshuffling of the officers aboard the _Titanic_, and the officer responsible for the glasses was no longer aboard. What had happened was this: William M. Murdoch had been assigned as chief officer, but his limited experience with big ships concerned Captain Smith, who asked for Henry Wilde, his chief officer aboard the _Olympic_. Murdoch was bumped down to first officer, which meant that Lightoller, originally the first officer was moved down to second officer. The man LIghtoller replaced, David Blair, was left behind in Southampton. For some reason, Blair had ordered the binoculars removed from the crow’s nest and shut up in a locker in his cabin. The shuffling about of the senior officers’ assignments was done at almost the last minute, Wilde arriving just hours before sailing time, and in the confusion Blair either forgot to tell anyone where the glasses were, or else whoever he told forgot about them. In any case the binoculars were not where they were supposed to be, and nobody had any idea where they were. Methinks “Binoculars found in the crow’s nest” has all the authenticity of photos of Bigfoot or the Montana fur-bearing trout. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2012, 5:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480/20 "2012-01-14T17:29:03Z")
[Here’s an account](http://www.iup.edu/magazine/page.aspx?id=43033) of recovery of a pair of binoculars from the Titanic. There’s nothing in it about them being in the crow’s nest; they were recovered from near the bow section and the article suggests they had been on the bridge. It’s likely that the reference to the crow’s nest was just an assumption on the part of whoever wrote the copy. > [@](#): > > Today, we will be rewarded for traveling “off the beaten path.” We find a pristine pair of binoculars, still in their case, almost immediately after leaving the bow. This is significant because only one pair of badly deteriorated binoculars has ever been recovered from the Titanic. Moreover, we know that binoculars were issued to the Titanic’s crew, but they were never given to the lookouts in the crow’s nest. Could this pair have remained unused in its case, possibly on the ship’s bridge? We recover the binoculars and turn south. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/binoculars-found-in-titanic-crows-nest/609480.md?page=2)