ID & Evaluation: 19th Century Camphor Wood Marine/Campaign Chest

Hello everyone,

I would like to get your expert opinion on this marine chest.

Description & Material:

It might be made of solid camphor wood, which is fragrant (spicy/menthol scent). It features dovetail construction and original brass hardware.

Dimensions:

• Width: 92 cm
• Depth: 50 cm
• Height: 48 cm

Condition:

The wood is healthy with no signs of woodworm. I have just started nourishing the wood with oil.

• Missing parts: The central brass inlay on the lid is missing. Also, 6 out of 16 brass corner protectors are missing.
• Interior: It has its original side compartment (candle box/till) with a functional sliding locking mechanism.
• Features: It has the typical carved wooden "stopper" at the back to protect the lid hinges.

Could you help me determin its origin and provide a rough estimate of its value in this condition (with the missing brasses)?

Thank you very much for your time and expertise ![/url][/IMG] [/url][/IMG]

 

Looks like a couple pictures are not showing up.... or are these duplicates? Can we have a look at the top with inlays? Brass? Any marks on the lock? Any provenance? Where and when did you get it?

Aside the unanswered questions, my gut reaction is India or Southeast Asia and not antique. I don't particularly see any indication that this is a real marine or captain's chest.

 

Thank you very much for your answer. I have no idea of provenance, it was abandoned in an aunt's cellar. I could not find any word or letter on it.

 

Im with Brad. Theres no signs of real wear ,at least from what we can see in a pic. I think its more modernish but not yesterday. Its very nice,Id have bought it !

 

Are the brass elements just sort of stuck on? I don't see any kind of tacks or tack holes.

Not sure how long camphor or cedar would retain its scent.

 

Thank you for your help, I truly appreciate.
The brass elements are fitted - or were fitted - with tacks. And there are tack holes.
Here are some more picture, from the bottom and other details.

 

Imo it is Indian, 20th century. The wood looks stained. The brass mounts are very thin, probably stamped from a sheet rather than cast.
I don't see a marine or campaign connection either.

The candle box is found on this style chests, whether 19th century or recent. It wasn't just an addition for Western colonial use, but it is also found in Zanzibar chests made for Omani colonists.

 

The only parts that makes me think it wants to be old are the latch and the screws. Newer ones usually don't have an actual inset latch, or any lock at all. The screws in the hinges are flatties. The brass work looks new though, and the wood doesn't look "right" for anything really old.

 

What’s interesting is the consistency of wear and patina inside as well as outside, which argues against a recently made box with artificially aged surfaces. At the same time, this kind of straightforward plank construction can persist quite late in some regions, so it doesn’t fix a date on its own.

What would help further is seeing the end grain of these bottom boards to check for hand-saw versus circular saw marks, and close-ups of a few individual screw heads from different areas to see how consistent they are. Those details would make it easier to judge whether this is earlier construction or a later continuation of traditional methods.

 

In many Indian workshops the work is done entirely by hand, so that isn't necessarily something to go by.

 

Once again, thanks a lot for your answers !
Here are some more pics that I hope might be useful.
Best regards

 

That’s a good point, and it probably reflects my own bias toward 18th- and 19th-century Western furniture.

 

You're not the only one here.

 

The image showing a sharply defined wooden corner with a small, flat brass plate fitted near the top edge is interesting. The metal piece is neatly cut, evenly thick, and sits flush against the surface, with clean, straight edges and no obvious hand-forging irregularities. Its regular shape and finish suggest a factory-made fitting rather than an earlier hand-cut or hand-hammered component.

 

A Google Images search brings up a surprisingly large number of "antique" chests like this on the internet.

Debora