Posted 12 years ago
Womo77
(1 item)
Can anybody tell me anything about this chest I have been given and if its worth anything as an antique? It says on the label inside its a finnigans of manchester clothes chest.
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Nice old chest or dome top trunk -- seems to be from about 1890 or so. Unusual looped latches on it. This trunk in my opinion would be a good candidate for restoration or refinishing. A good cleaning and perhaps some work on the wood slats might make it presentable. To refinish I would take off all of the canvas and stain the pine body underneath, and sand and refinish the wood slats. Some do paint over the canvas to clean it up but I never seem to like the look of a painted trunk. It may take a little off the value but most trunks are not all that valuable so it really comes down to what your personal preference is. It is great that you have a label as most trunks do not. It makes a dangerous toy box as the lid is heavy and those latches would lock in a child. Make sure no kids are around this one, and perhaps put a lock on it even in storage. Great old trunk -- thanks for the post!
I had never seen that type of hasp on a trunk before either. It also looks as though the tray is set in deeper than usual. Is it American made or European?Finnigans of Manchester sounds Irish or British but I will give it a google.
It appears that the label is from a dept store in business in the U.K. in the 1930's till the 1968 or so. So, the label may be the distributer and not the maker. There is a list of makers being complied at http://www.brettunsvillage.com/trunks/history/trunkmakers.html
Finnigans of Manchester is not on it but you may want to check out the site and send a picture of that label and see if there is more info forthcoming. Have fun.
Your trunk is most definitely European, most likely the UK. I believe the latches were added as they attached with screws. Those are the type of latches you would use on a gate.
Jim
HMSantiquetrunks.com