Au Depart Cabin Trunk, Circa 1910

A glorious trunk by the French maker Au Départ. With brass fittings and leather trim. Circa 1910. The damaged original cotton lining to the interior has been replaced with a similar one to match. Dimensions: 101 cm/39¾ inches (length) x 53 cm/20? inches (depth) x 47.5 cm/18¾ inches (height). Au Départ are one of the Grande Marques of French luggage makers. They were founded in 1834 around the advent of railway travel; Au Départ literally means 'at departure'. In 1847, Au Départ first opened at 7 Boulevard Denain in Paris selling luggage and travel goods, positioned opposite the newly opened Gare du Nord railway station. However, it wasn't until 1871 that the company really began to expand, when it was taken over by the Bertin brothers, Ernest and Paul who had started their business selling haberdashery at the Saint-Quentin market and then expanded to include bags and baskets. Under the stewardship of the Bertin brother’s, a second Paris shop was opened in 1874 at 29, Avenue de l’Opéra, while the Boulevard Denain store expanded its product offering to include armoury, hunting and fishing equipment...

A wonderful brass bound Louis Vuitton LV monogram cabin trunk that is taller than usual and would be perfect as a coffee table. Comes complete with its original interior and tray. Th...

A well proportioned natural leather covered Louis Vuitton cabin trunk that has built up an attractive patina with age. Has original leather handles & brass fittings and has its original interior in-tact (including the original tray); Circa 1930. One of the original handle supports is a newly made replacement of the original, that was beyond repair. Provenance: From the collection of Anouska Hempel, noted interior designer, hotelier and taste maker. Dimensions: 91 cm/35⅞ inches (length) x 52 cm/20½ inches (depth) x 34.5 cm/13⅝ inches (height). About Louis Vuitton From humble beginnings, Louis Vuitton laid the foundations for a luggage enterprise serving the upper echelons of 19th-century society. His son, Georges, expanded on his father’s work throughout the 20th century. Louis Vuitton was born on 4 August 1821 in Anchay, a rural village in Eastern France. His father, Xavier Vuitton, was a farmer, his mother, Coronne Gaillard, a milliner. In 1835, aged 13, Vuitton left Anchay on foot for his two-year journey to Paris. He found work as a layetier – a maker of wooden boxes and cases for transporting travelers’ possessions – and was selected as the personal layetier to Empress Eugénie de Montijo, a Spanish Countess and wife of Napoleon III. In 1854, at 4 Rue Neuve de Capucines, Paris, Vuitton launched his enterprise, gaining recognition among Parisian nobility. A second Parisian store opened at 1, Rue Scribe, after the 1871 Siege of Paris. Striped “Rayée” canvas and the first Vuitton Wardrobe Trunk arrived in the 1870s, expanding abroad to 289 Oxford Street, London, and introducing the Damier canvas in the 1880s. Louis Vuitton passed...

An exceptional bespoke leather Goyard steamer trunk with original interior. Circa 1910. The lock plate for this trunk has been changed at some point in it's history. In 1853 Françoi...

Large steamer trunk by Goyard in their signature 'Goyardine' chevron pattern canvas covering with polished brass lock, catches & handles; circa 191...

A wonderful trunk by the French Grand Magasin, Chalons, of Alexandria Egypt. With brass fittings, and original interior lining and key, circa 1915. Dimens...

A rare antique flat top trunk made in Paris, France by Au Depart. Interior with removable tray.

Around the turn of the 19th and 20th century Louis Vuitton had established himself as a market leader in trunk making and needed to set his...

Around the turn of the 19th and 20th century Louis Vuitton had established himself as a market leader in trunk making and needed to set his...

Beautiful decorative cabin trunk from the 1930s. These were often used as a wardrobe on intercontinental crossings. The idea was that you left the clothes in the suitcase. Interior i...

Fitted Steamer Trunk Cabin Wardrobe, A Superb piece of history dating back to the time when your luggage would be taken to your cabin. This is a small overnight version, it is in...

A rare Louis Vuitton cabin trunk covered in leather. Dating to the early part of the 20th century, covered not in the world famous (but more common) monogram canvas but in a single piece of cow hide. These all-leather trunks were made by special order and Louis Vuitton used...