The problem with trunks . . .
. . . . is that building them was a trade. This involved extensive training for a number of years, and was shrouded in secrecy so as to preserve each master’s advantage in business. In France this was less true than in England, as evidenced by the _______ publishing of Denis Diderot’s __________________________________, which described and also pictured the trades practiced there.
As a result of this secrecy, the best information we have is that gleaned from extant (surviving) examples, informed by what we know of woodworking and metalworking of the era.
Here are some websites that may help you develop an “eye” for what eighteenth century trunks and chests were like.
Colonial Willamsburg emuseum https://emuseum.colonialwilliamsburg.org/search/trunk
Mount Vernon https://emuseum.mountvernon.org/search/trunk
1st Dibs www.1stdibs.com
antiques-atlas.com
Chairish
Etsy
Ebay
The Eighteenth Century Material Culture Resource Center Slideshows (Trunks and Portmanteaus)
The truth is, there is no replacement for plain old hard work, going through the search results garnered by your preferred browser and search engine. The listings are ever changing.
It’s wise to scrutinize the listings with discernment. No person can be expected to have in-depth knowledge of every field; and when a seller isn’t a specialist, or a museum curator is responsible for large numbers of items, he has only so much time and resources to spend.
INSPIRED BY . . .
In the following section are trunks I’ve built to deliberately resemble photos I saw of surviving examples. A link to the online presence of each extant trunk appears below its copycat. Please recognize that these are not intended as “faithful reproductions.”
https://www.historicnewengland.org/explore/collections-access/gusn/310774
https://www.antiques-atlas.com/antique/18th_century_pony_skin_trunk_of_small_size/as203a123
https://emuseum.colonialwilliamsburg.org/objects/10782/trunk?ctx=1b84388158eb9acd2d70475f701200026dc88af5&idx=4 and https://emuseum.colonialwilliamsburg.org/objects/13117/trunk
https://emuseum.colonialwilliamsburg.org/objects/31759/trunk Note: Size prohibits use of the supporting brass on the original