A remarkable photograph of the iceberg 'most likely' to have sunk the Titanic has surfaced 108 years after the disaster.
The black and white picture was taken by pure coincidence two days before the sinking by the captain of another passenger liner crossing the Atlantic.
The seaman, a Captain W. Wood who served on board the SS Etonian, was interested in photography and captured the huge iceberg on his camera.
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Crucially, he made a note of the geographic coordinates which were almost the same for when the Titanic struck an iceberg 40 hours later and sank with the loss of 1,522 lives.
Capt Wood got the photo developed when he reached New York and sent a print of it to his great-grandfather along with a letter in which he stated that it was the iceberg that sank the Titanic.
Though Capt Wood mistakenly dated the picture 1913 - a year after the Titanic sank - the letter was sent in April 1912.
He wrote: "I am sending you a sea picture, the Etonian running before a gale and the iceberg that sank the Titanic.
"We crossed the ice tracks 40hrs before her and in daylight so saw the ice easily and I got a picture."
He wrote a caption in black ink on the accompanying photo, noting 'iceberg taken by Captain Wood SS Etonian in 41°50N 49°50W April 12th at 4pm'.
The Titanic struck an iceberg at 10.20pm on 14 April and sank several hours later.
Photos of the icebergs in the Titanic's vicinity taken before and after the collision have come to light over the past century.
But the one in this photo seems to be the most likely. Its unusual shape at the top matches sketches and eyewitness descriptions of the one the Titanic struck.
The photo and the letter are now being sold at auctioneers Henry Aldridge and Son of Devizes, Wilts, for an estimated £12,000 ($15,000).
Auctioneer Andrew Aldridge said: "There were never any photographs taken on board the Titanic of the iceberg, only images of ones in the same area in the days before and after.
"But Captain Wood's photograph must be the most likely of all of these images.
"Fredrick Fleet was the lookout who first spotted the iceberg and he later drew a sketch of it, as did crew member and eye-witness Joseph Scarrott.
"Their sketches both appear similar to the iceberg in this photo and have the same distinctive odd shape at the top.
"But the letter from Captain Wood adds far more weight to this iceberg being the one. He seems unequivocal that this one was the iceberg that sank the Titanic.
"It was pure luck that Captain Wood took the photo when he did."
The 5ins by 4ins photo is being sold on 20 June.Featured Image Credit: BNPSTopics: UK News, News, titanic, UK