An exceptional seaman's chest with the interior of the lid painted with a marine scene. The owner, Murdoch Campbell, must have been a blue water sailor prior to settling in the town of Port Welshpool, in Corner Inlet, Victoria, Australia. He became a commercial fisherman and was the owner and master of the vessel LOTTIE which foundered at sea in 1908. Murdoch's body was recovered in early March 1909. He was sixty years old.
The left interior of the chest is fitted with a ditty box, beneath which is a concealed drawer shielded by a sliding panel.
The painted interior is a panel of a three-masted clipper with other vessels in the offing. On either side of this main panel are two smaller panels, one with a botanical painting and the other with a man and a woman. There is a ribbon banner with Murdoch Campbell inscribed and a blue and a red ensign on either side. The panel surmounted with a floral decoration.
The becketts (rope handles), are original. Tradition has it that the seaman owner put all his aquired skill and natural ability into making the finest becketts for his personal chest. These are good becketts, made to look like rope strands when in reality they are cloth covered and painted.
The painted finish on the box is as found. A few minor inconsequential repairs