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Large iron Nuremburg ("Armada") chest (late 1500s to mid-1600s), with unique "Adam and Eve"-themed i

Currency:USD Category:Artifacts / Non-wreck Artifacts Start Price:5,000.00 USD Estimated At:5,000.00 - 7,500.00 USD
Large iron Nuremburg ( Armada ) chest (late 1500s to mid-1600s), with unique  Adam and Eve -themed i
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This item SOLD at 2012 Apr 11 @ 20:27UTC-4 : AST/EDT
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Large iron Nuremburg ("Armada") chest (late 1500s to mid-1600s), with unique "Adam and Eve"-themed inner plate, with original key (fully operational). 150 lb, 34" x 18" x 17". When people think of pirate "treasure chests," this is the image that comes to mind; but the truth is that these more or less mass-produced German boxes were like the Diebold safes of their time: way too heavy and bulky to transport, even when empty, yet eminently secure. They were made for castles and manors, and were used to hold great treasures, but surviving intact and functional specimens like this one are rare and in demand. The disguised keyhole on top (not the large, ornate false keyhole in the front) operates an ingenious locking mechanism under the lid that throws 7 bolts around the lip of the chest all at once to prevent prying. What is neat about this particular example is that the large (29" x 14") steel plate covering the locking mechanism shows a cutaway "Adam and Eve" (twice, side-by-side); otherwise the chest is somewhat ordinary, with no scenery painted on the outside or the inside (red bottom inside), typically rusty but solid and intact (couple rivets on top missing), with large C-shaped handles on the sides and 2 straps in front to hold down bolt-loops on the lid when shut. (Extra packing charges apply.)