When Louis Vuitton designed his first stackable flat-topped trunk in 1858, he already held high status in French society, having been a personal box-maker to Empress Eugènie. Today, Louis Vuitton trunks are no less beloved, with designer collaborations on newer models and high sale prices for vintage pieces. From June 19 to July 3, Christie’s auctioned “the largest private collection of Louis Vuitton trunks ever offered,” appropriately called Legendary Trunks: A European Private Collection. Featuring nearly 100 trunks, the online auction totaled €2.4 million, or $2.5 million in U.S. currency, with, according to Christie’s, “significant international participation.”
Christie's
The top lot was an explorer wardrobe trunk from 1925, which sold for €189,000, or over $200,000. Its hermetic copper exterior makes it a rare piece. Some early Louis Vuitton trunks were made of metal so they would hold up in the rough conditions of expeditions. A hermetic zinc trunk, made about 1870, sold for €81,900, or about $87,600.
Christie's
Offering trunks dating from the 1870s to 2021, the auction traces the history of the Louis Vuitton trunk, which incorporates the history of fashion, travel, and 19th- to 20th-century society. One of the earliest trunks in the auction was made about 1872 out of Trianon canvas, which Christie’s describes as “a grey, water-resistant fabric that was odourless and extremely hard-wearing.“ This trunk, with black lacquered iron hardware and many marks and scratches from longtime use, sold for €2,016, or about $2,150.
Vuitton’s earliest trunks were made from the gray Trianon canvas, but it wasn’t long before the brand introduced the colors and patterns that it is known for today. The checkerboard Damier canvas, which Christie’s Handbags & Accessories specialist Lucile Andreani calls “the quintessential Louis Vuitton aesthetic,” was introduced in 1888. An early example of a trunk with this canvas, a men’s High 90 trunk with brass hardware from 1896, sold for an impressive €27,720, or over $29,000, more than doubling its high estimate.
Christie's
Georges Vuitton created the famous LV monogram pattern in 1896 as a tribute to his late father. A 1932 monogram canvas library trunk sold for €88,200, or over $94,000, more than eight times its high estimate. One reason for its high price may have been its association with another cultural icon of the 20th century, Ernest Hemingway. The trunk didn’t belong to him, but it was made in the style of the famous Hemingway trunk that Gaston-Louis Vuitton, grandson of the brand’s founder, designed for the author. This trunk included book compartments, a large drawer and a space for a portable typewriter, here occupied by an Underwood Standard.
Christie's
Not everything in the auction was a traveler’s trunk. A circa 1910 first-aid kit trunk in natural wood with a red cross painted on the lid sold for €32,670, or nearly $35,000. A label marked “Pharmacie Campagne” under the lid lists the supplies the kit would include. A true product of its time, laudanum is among them.
You may also like:
Rare Gowns Found in Trunks Unpack Important Fashion History
Vintage Vuitton steamer trunk closes at $6,875
English
العربية
Nederlands
Français
Deutsch
Italiano
日本語
한국어
Русский
Español
Svenska
Türkçe
اردو
Tiếng Việt