At first glance, there is a trunk that does not look like. Black, voluminous, without apparent distinction, if not its dimension, which astonishes. Higher than wide, it does not have the longitudinal opening of the wardrobe trunks. An enigmatic baggage, then. And for good reason, since it is a trunk for an aerostat nacelle. A 1906 rarity signed from the Louis Vuitton house. A trunk for the air At the origin of this trunk, there is Georges, son of Louis Vuitton, on the lookout, in this twentieth century which hardly begins, of all the new opportunities of travel. Alongside the automobile, the railway, and the steamer, many adventurers take pride in using the air for their leisure travel. Aviation is still in its infancy, and it is therefore in dirigibles that one flies over the countryside. If this mode of air travel makes it possible to embark several people, the weight question proves crucial. The trunks that Georges Vuitton asked his workshops to design, would not weigh down the aircraft. On the edges of the "lozine" Thus this trunk for aerostat nacelle, is made of poplar for the lightness of the material, and covered with black coated canvas. For the rigidity of the walls, one finds the wands of oak which enclose the trunk as on all the models of the Parisian house. Here the famous LV monotype has been very discreet. The eye of the specialist finds it on the nails as well as on the edges in "lozine", this ancestor of bakelite, characteristic material of the Vuitton 1900. Typical edges, therefore, that complete leather wrists. A level of finish that classifies this trunk above the entry-level metal edges, but below the upper level, with copper edges and brass cuffs. As on each Louis Vuitton coin, a serial number, number 560 498, stamped inside the lid, allows to complete the authentication of this amazing piece of luggage. An ephemeral success As soon as the Vuitton trunks for aerostat nacelle are presented at the Universal Exhibition in Milan, they are distinguished. Besides their initial functionalities (2 removable internal volumes allow to store linens and dishes of travel) the trunks are revealed precious auxiliaries. In the event of a fall at sea or on a body of water, the volumes, unloaded from their utensils, offer a safe reserve of buoyancy to the wicker basket. Las, the ranks of the admirers of Montgolfier will be reduced as skin of grief. The exploits of Santos Dumont, which in October 1906 succeeded its first approved flight of 25 meters, and the takeoff of the modern aviation, quickly sign the obsolescence of the dirigible balloon, and with it the decline of these uncommon trunks. Elisio Das Neves, a specialist of this type of objects, will have to wait a century to identify a pair. The only ones, to date, in 17 years of craft. Malle Louis Vuitton for aerostat nacelle Dimensions 97X90X52 cm