Images(8)

Trunk

Dateca. 1755

Labeled by Richard Lucas

OriginEngland, London

MediumDeal, leather, brass, iron, textile, and paper

DimensionsOH: 21 1/4"; OW: 42 1/8"; OD: 22".

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1956-2

DescriptionTrunk. Flat base, straight sides, hinged, domed lid with large brass catch plate at front (catch missing) in shape of a crown; open, scrolled heart-shaped lockplate below, surrounding large keyhole; front and top decorated all over with flowering tulips and scrolls formed by small, brass tacks insterspersed with larger tacks; tacks also form border between top and base around edges on top and front; three large pieced brass braces at front corners on each side; one large steel bail handle on each side; interior plain, lined with multicolored marblized paper; printed paper label with rococo cartouche around the text is pasted inside center of lid; polychrome woven textile straps nailed inside lid and case on both ends; three horizontal braces nailed to brace.
Label TextBrass nail studding was a popular decorative technique for leather trunks from the fifteenth to nineteenth centuries. Trunks during these periods were wooden carcasses covered with thin leather as a waterproofing measure, and the brass nails not only acted as decoration but helped to secure the leather while protecting it from abrasion.

This trunk features a label on the inside of its lid which advertises the business of Richard Lucas, a trunk maker at Dover Castle. His shop was at the corner of Nicholas Lane and Cannon Street in London. According to the label, Lucas is said to have made trunks from Russian leather that were suitable for exportation and traveling. He also advertises his ability to make leather fire buckets and cases for China and glass plates. The cartouche at the top of the label depicts a castle, suggestive of his shop name, Dover Castle. A related trunk with the same label sold at auction in England in 2022 and is dated on the lid 1757 in brass nails, suggesting the CWF trunk likely dates around that time as well.

Richard Lucas may also have been in partnership with Edward Smith in London. A trunk by that duo is in the Colonial Williamsburg collection 1971-400a.
MarkingsPrinted label attached to underside of lid reads: "Richd/Lucas/Trunkmaker,/at the Dover Castle,/the Corner of Nicholas Lane, Cannon Street/ London./ Makes all sorts of Russia Leather, Hair/ & Black Leather Trunks, Hair and Gilt,/ Leather Nests of Trunks, for Exportation/ Likewise Choice of Strong Travelling Trunks/ & Leather Portmanteaus, Fire Buckets &/Jacks at the Most Reasonable Rates./The Strongest, neatest cases made for Plate,/ China & Glass." A large rococo cartouche at top shows a scene of a castle (probably Dover).