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This rare Louis Vuitton monogram canvas shoe trunk, dating to the 1920s and personalized with the initials “DEK,” represents one of the most sophisticated and highly specialized forms of early 20th-century luxury travel luggage.

Constructed in the house’s iconic monogram canvas with lozine leather trim, the trunk is reinforced with brass-bound edges and corner mounts, and fitted with a central brass lock and multiple latches. The side door opens to reveal an exceptionally well-preserved interior, fully fitted with a series of individual drawers, each with leather pulls and label frames, above a larger compartment below.

Designed as a portable wardrobe for footwear, the trunk reflects the remarkable innovation of Louis Vuitton during the golden age of travel. Each drawer functions as an individual shoebox, allowing pairs to be stored securely while remaining immediately accessible—an elegant solution to the demands of increasingly mobile and style-conscious clientele.

As recorded in period accounts, Vuitton developed such compartmentalized interiors to protect delicate personal effects while maintaining order in transit. These highly specialized designs were favored by elite travelers, including figures such as Lily Pons, who commissioned trunks of this type to accommodate extensive wardrobes during international travel.

Examples of shoe trunks with complete fitted drawer systems were produced in limited numbers and often executed as bespoke commissions. The present example, with its intact interior and personalized exterior, stands as a rare and highly functional expression of Vuitton’s craftsmanship and the culture of refined travel in the early 20th century.

Today, such trunks are among the most desirable Vuitton forms, combining architectural presence with a direct connection to the lifestyle of an international elite.

Explore additional Louis Vuitton trunks, including hat trunks, library trunks, and other rare bespoke examples from the golden age of travel.

Condition

Very good overall condition, with a well-developed patina to the monogram canvas and leather trim consistent with age and use. Brass hardware with light surface wear and oxidation. Interior exceptionally well-preserved and complete, retaining the full set of fitted drawers with minor expected wear.

Literature

Pierre Léonforte and Eric Pujalet-Plaà, Louis Vuitton: 100 Legendary Trunks, Abrams, New York, 2010.
(See related discussion of specialized shoe trunks and compartmentalized interiors, pp. 252–253.)

The cabin trunk is the form that defined transatlantic travel in its golden age — engineered to a reduced height that allowed it to slide beneath the berth of a first-class stateroom aboard the great ocean liners of the early twentieth century, keeping a traveler's essentials within reach for the duration of a crossing that might last five days or more. This handsome example, dating to the 1920s and produced in Louis Vuitton's Paris atelier, retains on its front face the original stencilled designation "600 F.S.-1" — almost certainly a stateroom or cabin assignment from its days aboard a passenger vessel, a marking applied by the ship's baggage handlers to ensure correct routing and delivery. It is a detail that transforms a fine trunk into a specific historical object: one that crossed oceans, was handled by porters, and was delivered to a first-class cabin by people who knew exactly what it was and who it belonged to.

The exterior is executed in monogram canvas with the natural wood slat banding characteristic of 1920s production, lozine leather trim with the embossed LV border running the full perimeter, and the full complement of original brass hardware — central lock plate, flanking clasps, corner guards, and studded borders. The lock plate is stamped with the serial number 075075. The canvas presents with the characteristic warm, rich patina of a piece that has lived a full life in honest use, while retaining the structural integrity of Vuitton's exceptional construction throughout.

The interior is lined and fitted, preserving the original configuration in which the trunk traveled. The piece is presented on a custom brass stand — the same clean rectangular profile as Vuitton's own display mounts — which elevates it to coffee table height while allowing the lid to open freely, providing storage of considerable capacity.

Cabin trunks with clear, legible period stencilling documenting their original shipboard use are a specific and sought-after category within the Vuitton collecting market. The combination of the "600 F.S.-1" designation, the serial number, and the original hardware and interior in this condition represents a piece of genuine travel history.

Stencilling: 600 F.S.-1 (original shipboard cabin designation) Serial No.: 075075 Dimensions: 13 × 36 × 20 in Stand: Custom brass, purpose-made

Condition: Very good overall, consistent with age and honest use. Monogram canvas strong throughout with rich, even patina. Natural wood slat banding and lozine trim structurally sound. Brass hardware complete — lock plate, clasps, corner guards, and studs all present. Serial number 075075 on lock plate. Stencilling "600 F.S.-1" bold and fully legible. Interior lining and fittings present and intact. Custom brass stand present and structurally sound.

Literature:

• Paul-Gérard Pasols, Louis Vuitton: Malletier à Paris, Paris, 1987

• Florence Müller, Louis Vuitton: 100 Legendary Trunks, New York, 2010

• Pierre Léonforte, Louis Vuitton: The Birth of Modern Luxury, Paris, 2004