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An exceptionally rare, museum-quality piece of American funerary history. This is an authentic, completely intact Circa 1880–1888 Sargent & Company Casket Hardware Traveling Salesman Sample Board. Designated by the factory as Master Board No. 36, this piece is a pristine survivor from the Gilded Age of the American funeral industry. Measures: 15.5 X 12.5 X 1.5 inches.
Unlike piecemeal collections, this is a factory-curated layout presented exactly as an 19th-century traveling salesman would have showcased it to funeral directors and undertakers to secure luxury casket orders.
* The Factory Stamp: The top border features the original, crisp gold-leaf factory stamp reading \"0.36.\" (Board No. 36). In archived Sargent & Co. trade manuals from the 1880s, Board No. 36 was cataloged specifically to display their most prestigious line of \"Finest White Metal Heavily Silver-Plated Coffin Trimmings.\"
* The Inventory Numbers: Every piece retains its hand-inked factory inventory codes written directly onto the thick cardstock backing by the manufacturer\'s clerks (including design series 5651, 5647, and 5491). These numbers precisely match the proprietary design sequences fiercely guarded by Sargent & Co. out of New Haven, Connecticut. DESSCRIPTION BELOW!
* The Currency Code & Exporters: The ink prices written next to the pieces (such as 10/-, 16/-) indicate shillings and pence rather than American dollars. This is a critical detail confirming that this specific board was curated by Sargent & Co.\'s export department to supply high-end undertakers, coffin makers, and luxury brokers across the British Empire, Australia, or Canada, where premium American-manufactured metalwork was highly prized.
This board beautifully demonstrates the transition between High Victorian Gothic Revival and Eastlake Movement design theories prevalent in late 19th-century mourning culture:
* The Iconography: Features the highly sought-after, beautifully stylized inverted heart drop plates on the vertical columns. In Victorian mourning iconography, the heart symbolized eternal love and a life well-lived, while functionally acting as a heavy visual weight to anchor drop-bars.
* The Detailing: Features sharp, crisp relief work cast in heavy \"White Metal\" (a premium antimony-lead alloy), including classical Greek palmettes, anthemion foliage flanking the horizontal extension bars, intricate floral roundels, heavy scrolling swing-bail handles, and matching lid thumbscrew caps.
* Hardware: Excellent antique condition. The metal has aged into a gorgeous, deep pewter-silver patina with crisp definition and no structural breaks or repairs.
* Backing: The original thick cardstock display backing is fully intact with uniform, natural age-toning. The handwritten script and gold leaf factory numbers remain perfectly legible.
* Framing: Housed in an antique dark-stained wooden shadowbox frame under glass, keeping the entire delicate composition perfectly preserved for over 140 years.
During the 1880s, the \"Beautiful Death\" movement in Victorian culture led to highly romanticized, grand funerals. Caskets were treated as fine parlor furniture, requiring high-art metalwork to honor the deceased.
* The \"Silver\" Finish: These samples are heavily leaded white metal or cast bronze heavily plated in nickel or triple-refined sterling silver. A specialized dark lacquer was hand-wiped into the deep relief lines (a process known as antique oxidized finishing) to prevent glare and give the pieces an elegant, somber contrast beneath chapel lighting.
* No. 5013 & No. 5014 — Casket Lid Corner Brackets / Edge Guards
* Location: Upper-left and upper-right corners.
* Function: L-shaped protective plates wrapped tightly around the sharp corners of the casket lid or body. They reinforced the wood joints while adding a beautiful border frame around the fabric interior drapery.
* No. 5405 — Top Molding Border Trim / Frieze Bar
* Location: Top center.
* Function: A narrow horizontal accent plate screwed in a continuous line along the upper edge of the casket side walls to mimic fine architectural crown molding.
* No. 5433, No. 5493, & No. 5494 — Decorative Extension Straps / Top Lug Plates
* Location: Upper left and middle left.
* Function: These elongated horizontal bars acted as highly ornate accent straps. Positioned symmetrically along the casket body, they highlighted the placement of carrying bars or masked wood seams on paneled sideboards.
* No. 5486/2 — Keyhole Escutcheon Plate
* Location: Right-middle center.
* Function: A diamond-shaped shield surrounding the locking mechanism of a secure-locking casket lid. It features an integrated internal dust cover or swinging cap over the keyhole.
* No. 5647 — Center Medallion Backplate / Lid Ornament
* Location: Middle-right section.
* Function: A wide, symmetrical cartouche plate. Placed directly in the dead center of the casket flank or lid, it served as a stand-alone emblem or a decorative base behind a center lifter handle.
* No. 5651 & No. 5653 — Heavy Load-Bearing Side Bar Lugs
* Location: Lower-left and bottom-center rows.
* Function: These are the largest, heaviest horizontal castings on the board. Featuring heavily reinforced central bosses and thick mounting points, they attached directly to the frame to anchor the heavy iron arms that held the continuous wooden or metallic side carrying bars.
* No. 5652/1 — End Cap Capstone / Vertical Corner Shield
* Location: Lower right.
* Function: A vertically oriented shield plate mounted specifically on the narrow ends (head and foot) of the casket to frame the end-handles symmetrically.
* No. G42/5017 & No. G122/5491 — Short-Bar Drop Handles / Short Casket Pulls
* Location: Upper right and lower left.
* Function: Complete modular assemblies featuring heavily contoured swing-out bail handles attached to matching ornamental backplates. These allowed palladium bearers to lift the casket securely from the front and back ends.
