Is a kist the same as a coffer?

On Sellingantiques the two words are used for the same object. Of 38 recorded listings, 18 titles say coffer, and several print both terms together: "Coffer/Kist", "Chest or Kist", "Coffer Kist Jacobean". Kist is simply the Scots and northern English name for a lidded storage chest. A search on one word alone will skip a good part of the category.

What wood are they usually made from?

Oak dominates, appearing in 29 of 38 titles, panelled or carved. The rest are pine, described as kists, blanket boxes or storage trunks. Beyond those two timbers the archive names one leather-covered Scottish kist and one Victorian camphor wood trunk.

How old are most of these chests?

The dealers' own dating puts 15 listings in the 17th century, then five in the 18th, four in the 19th and three Victorian. The full span runs 1580 to 1930. Only seven of the 38 give a clean year, and titles that do usually say circa: c.1630, circa 1640, C.1665, c1740. Century labels here are period judgements rather than documented dates.

What is a mule chest?

A coffer with one or more drawers built into the base, giving storage you can reach without lifting the lid. Four titles in the archive use the term, dated from the 17th century through Queen Anne to George III.

Are pine kists different from the oak ones?

They sit at a different end of the category. All four pine titles fall at the bottom of the range, described as blanket boxes, storage trunks or toy boxes, and two are Victorian. Oak, by contrast, accounts for every listing in the upper half.

Were kists still being made in the 20th century?

Yes. The latest pieces recorded are a 1930s light oak lid box and a 1920s Jacobean-style kist, both revival work. Both sit at the foot of the range, alongside titles that hedge a period claim with "style" or "& Later".

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Antique Kists

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A kist is the Scots and northern English name for a lidded storage chest, made for linen, clothing and household goods, and doubling as a seat and a travelling box.

18th century

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18th Century Large Quality Carved Oak Coffer with Candle Box

From Prior and Willis

£1,046

FOR SALE

chests

18th century

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Oak Coffer C1740

From Deco Interiors

£850

FOR SALE

chests

19th century

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Attractive Large Antique Victorian Pine Kist Chest Storage Trunk Blanket Toy Box

From Abacus Antiques

£125

FOR SALE

chests

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Antique Kists

18th Century Large Quality Carved Oak Coffer with Candle Box

Oak Coffer C1740

Attractive Large Antique Victorian Pine Kist Chest Storage Trunk Blanket Toy Box

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