Louis VUITTON rue Scribe Lock n°021404 circa 1911 - Rare exp - Lot 188

Louis VUITTON rue Scribe Lock n°021404 circa 1911 - Rare expedition trunk in Monogram canvas stencilled "B.B", blue, red stable stripe, lozined edges, beech reinforcements, gilded brass corners and fasteners, natural leather handle, red, white striped canvas interior including bed dressing set. Dimensions: 80x38x40.5cm (wear, chips, marks, stains, accidents, non-original elements, restorations). Bibliography: "The principle of a folding bed in a trunk dates back to 1865, but at the time, Louis Vuitton himself neglected to patent it. Copied over and over again, it became so popular during the conquest of the Congo that it became known as "the Belgian bed"! As early as 1890, several types of trunk with removable camp bed - models for which a very official patent was finally applied for, and awarded to Georges Vuitton on January 17 1885 - appeared in the catalog (...).) In March 1905, on the eve of leaving for his expedition, Brazza placed several orders with Vuitton: in addition to two bed trunks in large Monogram canvas with articulated horsehair mattress in two-tone striped canvas (...)). "Louis Vuitton - 100 malles de légende" by Pierre Léonforte and Eric Pujalet-Plaà published by Editions de la Martinière 2010, page 37.