Louis Vuitton Monogram Travel Trunk with Red & Yellow Stripe and Period Label, France, 1940s, 90 cm

Painted stripes once let a household pick out its luggage on a crowded quay, and here one still runs bold through a field of brown Monogram. Dating to about the 1940s, this broad, low Louis Vuitton trunk keeps its travel label and decades of honest surface, a singular object rather than a standardized one.

The Piece

This Louis Vuitton travel trunk dates to approximately the 1940s and was made in France. Broad and low, approximately 90 cm wide, 33 cm high and 54 cm deep, it has a wide lid, reinforced edges and multiple hardware points designed to protect significant personal belongings through repeated movement, the durable personal architecture that preceded lightweight wheeled luggage.

Monogram canvas covers the body, framed by darkened leather reinforcement and aged metal fittings: corner protection, riveted details, multiple front clasps, central locking hardware and side hardware on reinforced framing. A bold red-and-yellow vertical stripe runs across the lid and front, a dramatic chromatic interruption to the brown Monogram; personalized stripes, initials and markings were commonly used to distinguish the luggage of particular travelers or households. A period-style travel label or plaque remains on the front.

The interior is pale and textile-lined, with a relatively open configuration rather than the drawer systems of wardrobe trunks, which makes the piece adaptable for storage or display. Deep brown Monogram, darkened leather, warm brass and oxidized metal, muted red, aged yellow and softened neutral textiles give the surface considerable depth. Beneath a protective glass or acrylic top it becomes a usable low table with the Monogram fully visible, and it serves equally as a boutique centerpiece, gallery pedestal, library piece or dressing-room storage.

Louis Vuitton's international reputation began with trunkmaking, luggage engineered for the changing travel culture of the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and, by the twentieth century, closely associated with luxury rail, automobile and ocean travel. A historic trunk of this kind represents the structural DNA of the Maison in perhaps its purest form.

Details

• Maker: Louis Vuitton
• Model: Travel trunk
• Era: 1940s (approx.)
• Origin: France
• Material: Monogram-patterned canvas; leather reinforcement; aged metal fittings and clasps; textile-lined interior
• Color: Brown Monogram with red-and-yellow vertical stripe
• Measurements: Width approx. 90 cm · Height approx. 33 cm · Depth approx. 54 cm
• Marking: Period-style travel label or plaque on the front

Condition

• Antique condition with extensive natural signs of age and use: dirt, scratches, abrasions, wear, surface losses, dents to the metal, irregularities to the hardware and general antique patina.
• The interior textile is antique and should be handled accordingly.
• Antique trunks can carry minor age-related characteristics not fully visible in photography; please review all photographs carefully.
• The painted stripe and travel markings are part of the trunk's historical identity and are best preserved rather than removed.

Authenticity & Care

Assessed through period construction, Monogram pattern characteristics, canvas aging, leather reinforcement, rivet placement, lock and clasp configuration, metal hardware, timber structure, interior materials and its labels and markings; any later repair or replacement component identified in hand is disclosed. Every piece is examined and documented in Japan before dispatch and is offered with the Japonista authenticity guarantee.

Delivery from Japan

Crated in Japan and shipped insured by air or sea freight. A freight quote is confirmed with you before dispatch through our Museum-Grade Logistics Suite™. Import duties and taxes, where applicable, are payable on arrival. Returns follow our published policy.

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