This chest is loosely based on the Oseberg storage chest, though not intended to be an exact reproduction.
This chest is loosely based on the Oseberg storage chest, though not intended to be an exact reproduction.
The wood is poplar and is stained/preserved with a coating of a mixture of pine tar, linseed oil and turpentine, similar to the material the Norse might have used to treat the ships, both inside and out.
On the left we have a close up of the hinges and hasp. All the metal work on the chest are my own forging's, which include 39 nails that are used to secure the corners of the chest and fasten the hasp and hinges to the box. The nails are "clinched" or bent over on the inside of the chest.
Then, on the right you can see how the hinges are mounted on the backside with hand forged nails.
But if you lift the lid, you see the real purpose of the chest. It has been sized so a Coleman Cooler fit's within.
I purchased a smaller cooler than I originally intended as I figured that this chest would be used up front in our displays to keep water or drinks. Any larger cooler for food should be kept back and out of site from the public. So, my concern was having an easy refillable chest to keep us hydrated.
Another reason for going with a smaller cooler chest, I felt that the size was more appropriate for the "slant side" chests that we see in historical records.
You can see how after I removed the hinges and handle, I turned it upside-down to trace the exterior dimensions onto a piece of butcher paper. The weight in the picture is just to keep the cooler from sliding around while I held the framing square against the sides. This insured that I got the true size of the cooler, even though the plastic sides were not straight up and down. I then laid out the approximate "side view", which helped me figure out the material I would need.