Posted 7 years ago
hmsantique…
(52 items)
This is a stunning Excelsior oak slat toy trunk I just finished. The trunk measures 14' long, 8 1/2" wide, and 10 1/2" tall. I have had a few of these, and this is the only one that is 10 1/2" tall instead of my other ones that were 9 1/2" tall. It is also the only one I have seen with this style lock. The exterior, and interior are exact reproductions of the original. Hmsantiquetrunks.com is the only place you can find exact reproductions of the leather lock protector, handles, and straps. Enjoy, and thank you. HMS Antique Trunks
Beautiful work.
Wonderful to see !
Nice job J C, as always, greendog.
Jim, I have three of these slat doll trunks in my collection. One of them has the same lock as yours but the slat clamps are different. I posted pictures a few years ago of two of them together. I've wondered if they are from different makers or are the differences due to customization or time period. The one with this lock has wheels the other two don't.
Love the trunk, as usual you did a wonderful job restoring it. Thanks for sharing.
Kathy, good eye. I had the style that you mentioned. Here is what I believe. The majority of these trunks, that we see, have the swinging keyhole cover, with the eagle on the cover. They also have the sheet iron slat clamps, brass button-head nails and the leather lock protector. If you compare these toy trunks to the full size ones, you will see that they are virtually exact. I believe this was done intentionally. I also believe that these trunks were first produced in the early 1870's as evidenced by the lock and slat clamp style. As time went on, improved locks, and slat clamps came into use, and found their way onto these Toy trunks. Change is a process, and I believe my trunk falls between the two styles. Maybe when mine was made the improved locks had arrived, but not the slat clamps? We will never know, but common sense goes a long way. Another factor which all businesses must consider is cost. The early slat clamps had to be cut to size, and have all four corners clipped. They also took a total of 88 nails to install the 22 clamps. The newer, complete slat clamps were simply purchased, and installed and only required 44 nails. A noticeable savings of time & money. As far as who made them, I believe they were all made by the same manufacturer. Exactly who that manufacturer is I do not know. Marvin Miller at This Old Trunk has been doing a great deal of research on Excelsior trunks, and is writing a paper on them. I believe he knows of at least 2 manufactures of the full size trunks. The Toy and full size trunks were not made by a company called Excelsior. Excelsior was a descriptor, not a proper name, that means “a product of superior quality”, much like the words premium, bespoke, or Supreme. The term Excelsior was used quite a bit in the 1800's on a variety of items.
Jim
Hmsantiquetrunks.com
Thank you all for your comments.
Jim
Hmsantiquetrunks.com