Posted 10 years ago
laurivandr…
(2 items)
Hi - I have had this trunk for probably 20 years or so and got from a home that was next door to my Mom and Stepdad in old downtown Louisville, Ky. The house was owned by two sisters and as a teenager I begged my Mom for one of these trunks and finally got one. The entire estate was left to my stepdad's Mother and there were several in the attic..these were old 4 story brownstone homes...I have never done anything with it, pardon the dust upon opening, but I think it's awesome on the inside! I have looked everywhere for info on the lock, cannot find anything.handles are missing, all wheels present, and there is a number 4 on both latches I guess is the best way to explain that. Obviously belonged to a female and there are some buttons in one of the tray pockets :-)...size is approx. 32 inches wide, 21 inches deep, and 25 inches tall counting dome. Any info would be appreciated...thank you!
Wow, it is a beauty. It looks as though there is more than one style of slat clamp on this trunk and I do not think I have seen that before. Very fancy and fabulous condition inside. A real treasure. Thanks for the post.?
Thanks - would like to know possible age if well, and the number 4 meaning on the locks...or anything else! lol :-)
That is a beautiful trunk. The pictures are small so I cannot zoom in for details -- the number 4 on the lock represents the size of the lock -- I think it goes up to 5. Looks like a high quality 1880's saratoga dome top trunk. (Saratoga denotes a high end type trunk for the maker in this style) Everything about it speaks of quality from the slat clamps to the fingering on the sides, the interior to the rivets. This is an example of craftsmanship in trunk making at its zenith. Any chance of a label? If not pretty hard to find a maker because it does not have the hardware that is marked by a maker. Great trunk -- thanks for the post!
All the ornate hardware is wonderful, The colors are beautiful. One of the best trunks I have seen. What ever you are doing to preserve the beauty of the trunk, don't change a thing.
Gotta hand it to trunk man for noting all the details...just another reason we wait for your input.
Ok so we searched for markings, and thinking something would only be on the lock we found a date in the side clamp/bracket (not sure what it's called)..I posted a pic above and also a 92 paper stamp on the bottom which I think is nothing. Any ideas about the date? Thanks for your help, I was so excited I found a mark of any kind lol.
The date is on two of the clamps, one on each side of the trunk.
That is really something! Right there in the open. Is it a patent date?
Not sure why they are showing as small - it's an 8 mp camera and I upload full image...but they enlarge when I click them so not sure why the will enlarge for some and not others :-(
I would be happy to email to anyone :-)
Ok - found it. It does say PAT, then on the lower edge says OCT 23 77...it's on a lot of them all over..
So I finally found the name and cleaned it enough to read on the lock...it says Excelsior Lock and the bottom has the pat date....any info on this would be appreciated for the trunk...how do you find the trunk maker, is it the same or does it matter? Thanks~