19th Century Oak & Iron Bound Silver Chest, Owned by Lord Irwin

A late 19th century iron bound oak silver plate chest, bearing a plaque inscribed ‘The Right Honourable Lord Irwin’, with additional paper label from Coutts & Co bank addressed ‘The Earl of Halifax’ . An attractive and useful storage chest with great history, having belonged to the Rt Hon Lord Irwin, Earl of Halifax, who was Viceroy of India and signed the Gandhi-Irwin pact with Mahatma Gandhi. He was Lord Irwin between 1925 and 1934 before becoming The Viscount Halifax. The plaque was therefore obviously added to the trunk in this period, but we believe the trunk to be 19th century and so predate the plaque. The trunk bears a pasted label from the Westminster Bank with the number 404, and another tied on label bearing the same number which is from Coutts Bank and addressed to the Westminster Bank in York, so we assume the trunk was used to store valuables. The lock is still in place but there is no key, so it is no longer such a secure storage option! The trunk has evidence of use, such as remnants of sealing wax on the front, the number 5 painted on the front and top, and various scrapes and knocks. It could be ‘tidied up’ further if a cleaner look is required, but we thought it best to leave its history on show. The interior has the remnants of a green lining inside, and the inside of the lid is lightly padded and lined with the same green fabric. There is a split in the timber across the domed lid, but this doesn’t affect the structure of the chest in any way and is purely visual. The iron strapping is all in good condition, and it has good strong twin carrying handles at each end.