Posted 10 years ago
beesting
(1 item)
this has been in the family forever, it is said it came over as the family immigrated.... the lock was busted off and leather straps are rotted off. its wood and very heavy. anyone have any idea about how old it is? i would like to know if it did come over on the ship with them , or purchased here in America.
very nice!!!
Maybe towed behind the boat. It has been around the block a few times but has character.
Blunder, I was thinking the same thing! Although that scene in "Joe vs. The Volcano" where the trunks were all lashed together into a raft also came to mind!
Character piece -- love it! This trunk is around circa 1890 .. with wonderful cast iron latches. Most likely north american made -- but they shipped plenty of trunks overseas and they ended up coming right back! You could bring it back to life or keep the fun patina it has. For a metal old trunk like this one I like to get rid of the reddish rust so I simply gun oil the whole thing and it takes on a darker luster. Without a label we will never know who actually made it unless someone out there has a similar one with a label. Great to have a family history piece. Welocme to Collector's Weekly and thanks for the post!
I can explain why its so extra beat up..... embarrassing... my sister took it ,and then had it appraised to see the value, when it was not worth a fortune she returned it, my father put it in the yard and filled it with dirt to plant flowers in! my mother hated that, and put it in the trash pile. I loved my grandmothers stories about playing with the trunk as a child and what she kept in it. so I saved it and cleaned it. but anything that was in it is gone (label or paper liner?) . I got the basement smell out- I washed it down with a product called "odormute" its a dog run deodorizer, if you can get an item wet (and this one already was) you can get rid of any musty nasty (yes even skunk) smells. I have not tried to clean it. I know its not worth any money but I like to have it around. I store old photos in it :) Trunkman- thanks for the advice on trying to clean it up. I have nothing to lose! I do admit, I like the weathered look LOL
Yeah beesting, you're hooked! maybe Daddy, T-Mon or some of our other trunk fanatics can point you toward a support group. LOL. I really like it's character, but wouldn't know where to put it, just like you. The family history obviously means a lot to you, so maybe "our" guys can come up with a solution. Hope so.
BB2, aka Shake & Bake, Honky, Bum'ble Clot etc.
One coat of clear varnish just the way it is and that thing would look awesome.
There is beauty in this piece because it is uniformly beat up -- I agree with Drill... one clear coat and you have a "Masterpiece".... and if you do you MUST post it from all sides.... or else....
or else we won't get to see it and we will be sad...
Hi all! so excited to see so many others who "get it" . I have old stuff, I like to leave it as is, cause I just simply like it that way. but I do like the idea of clean... :) I will get you all some more photos, didnt want to over do it... and when I get into some warm enough weather to get in the garage, I will try to clean this up and post more photos, I do see some beautiful trunks here.... and you're right, mine is uniformly beat up LOL it had been unloved for a while.... :)