(Fox News) – In May 7, 1915, the British ocean liner Lusitania was torpedoed
and sunk by a German U-boat, resulting in the loss of more than 1,100
lives, The attack on the civilian vessel sent shockwaves around the world.

Now, almost 104 years after the deadly torpedo attack, an extremely rare
hardtack ship’s biscuit from one of the ship’s lifeboats is up for auction in
the U.K. Made from flour, salt and water, cracker-like hardtack biscuits are
designed to be long-lasting, and have historically been a feature of long
sea voyages and military campaigns.

The biscuit will be auctioned by Henry Aldridge and Son on April 27. The
Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge told Fox News that the biscuit comes with a
letter written by a British soldier in the Royal Engineers explaining how
he obtained the unusual item. The soldier got the biscuit from one of the
Lusitania’s lifeboats when the liner’s survivors reached Queenstown
(now called Cobh) in Ireland.

The biscuit (above) has a pre-sale estimate of $3,920 to $6,533.

Colored illustration of the sinking of the Cunard liner Lusitania.