A section of the Titanic's famous Grand Staircase is expected to fetch up to £22,000 when it sells at auction.

The foot-long piece of oak made up part of the handrail of the staircase, which epitomised the luxury of the liner.

More recently it was made famous for providing the backdrop in many scenes of the Hollywood epic. It was one of the main areas of the ship immortalised in James Cameron's movie.

The piece of wood has intricate flower and ribbon carvings and made up the Aft Grand Staircase, which was near to where the ship split in two as it sank in the Atlantic in 1912.

More than 1,500 people died after Titanic struck an iceberg on her maiden voyage from Southampton to New York on April 15.

The item was recovered by James Adams, the first mate of the salvage ship the Minia, which arrived on the scene days after the sinking. Canadian Mr Adams pulled dozens of bodies from the freezing waters and kept the oak timber as a souvenir. It was about 4ft long at the time but Mr Adams did not realise what part of the ship it was from and made a picture frame out of it.

The frame was passed on through his family until his grandson, Gerald Mullin, a former district surveyor of British Columbia, sold it 15 years ago to a syndicate of four men. It was only when they took it to Walter Lord, author of the famous Titanic novel A Night to Remember, was it identified as part of the handrail of the staircase.

The party split the frame up into four sections and went their own way.

Now one of the party, who wishes to remain anonymous, has placed his side of the frame at an auction.

Andrew Aldridge, of auctioneers Henry Aldridge and Son, said: "The staircase epitomises the luxury of the ship."

It will go under the hammer at the auction at the annual British Titanic Society Convention at the Hilton Hotel, Chilworth, on April 11.

- Originally published April 2003.