The name of the great philosopher, scientist, and poet Omar Khayyam, born in the city of Nishapur, Iran, was also famous in the West. His rubaiyat have been repeatedly translated into European languages. Even his collections were printed on special covers in the form of extremely valuable gifts...
One such publication was published in 1911 under the title "The Great Omar". The cover of this book, depicting three peacocks, is decorated with gold and contains more than a thousand precious stones, such as ruby, emerald, carnelian, and turquoise.
For some reason, the owner of the book put it up for sale on March 29, 1912, at the Sotheby's auction house in London. The book will be sold for 405 pounds sterling (60 thousand US dollars at current value).
The auction house staff loaded the book in special packaging onto the Titanic, which was heading to America for delivery to its destination. The ship departed on April 10, 1912. He was supposed to arrive on April 17th. However, on April 15, Umar Khayyam's valuable collection, along with 1496 passengers and crew members, sank to the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean after hitting an iceberg...
Later, a copy of this rare book cover was made in London and donated to the British Library.
