Rare Royal Travel Trunk Linked to Marie Antoinette Heads to Auction in New York

A rare late 18th century royal travel trunk marked “Garderobe De La Reine N° 19,” or “The Queen’s Wardrobe No. 19,” is being sold at Sotheby’s in New York. The object is part of the auction house’s “Handbags and Trunks” sale, carries an estimate of $80,000 to $120,000, has a starting bid of $80,000, and is due to close on June 23.

Sotheby’s says the trunk dates to the second half of the 18th century and is associated with Marie Antoinette’s court, but it does not claim she personally used it. Instead, it likely served the royal household. The case, made of oak and fir, covered in nailed leather, reinforced with wrought iron, and locked with two locks, measures 48 by 111.5 by 52 centimeters.

The label turns a simple travel chest into a window on Versailles, where clothing was a political language and royal possessions were carefully numbered, recorded, and moved between palaces. Marie Antoinette, wife of Louis XVI, was among the most influential fashion figures in 18th century Europe, and her wardrobe drew intense attention in France and beyond. Her visibility also made her a target for criticism, as her lavish lifestyle came to symbolize detachment and excess in the eyes of the public.

Marie Antoinette was executed in 1793 after the fall of the monarchy in the French Revolution. Since then, objects linked to her have carried unusual historical weight. Similar trunks survive in the collections of Versailles and Trianon, including numbered examples 8 and 9, while another, numbered 10, was shown at the Carnavalet Museum in Paris. The current trunk was once owned by French interior designer and decorative arts figure Serge Royaux.