Wrought Iron Chest From Nuremberg, 17th Century

Wrought iron Corsair chest from Nuremberg, Germany, 17th century. Equipped with an ingenious locking system with 7 bolts and 3 hooks, with concealed false and real locks as well as 2 padlocks (later Fichet brand) on the front with keys Small interior chest with key Bears a signature to decipher (see photo) The 4 keys work Good condition. Weight 71 kg *Southern Germany, particularly Nuremberg, had made a specialty of the construction of these robust, all-metal chests, ancestors of our safes, and exported them throughout Europe. Around the middle of the 19th century, the English, passionate about things of the sea and proud of their maritime victories, enriched the legend by calling them "Armada Chest": these chests were supposedly designed to contain the gold ingots intended to finance the Invincible Armada... and that after its sinking, they were washed up on the coast like common wrecks. But the disaster of the Invincible Armada dates back to 1588, and Nuremberg manufactured them until the last quarter of the 18th century, from the smallest ones capable of containing jewelry to the largest ones suitable for a bank reserve. They are all made of wrought iron, reinforced with crisscrossing bands of the same metal. Decorative effect or deterrent, therefore artifice, on the facade, an ostentatious central lock is false!