Markings on a
faked medical
Chest for 'Norman Smith'
A medical chest came up
for sale at an auction house in the Northeast (Mass.) during 2008 and again
on eBay, then at Ruby Lane. It is sold over and over as being
authentic, but it is a total fake. Because it was marked as
belonging to Mass. 6th surgeon Norman Smith, it was of great interest
to this collector since Smith's
personal
surgical amputation set
is a part of this collection. A lot of additional photos were
requested and obtained from the seller and the markings were determined to
be a fake due to the modern font of the markings, the darkness of the black
printing, the lack of cut tags one would expect with a paper or foil
stencil, and above all... the information contained in the following article
published in 1861 regarding the correct 'Mass. 6th Vol.' markings for the
medical chests belonging to Norman Smith at the Battle of Baltimore.
As can be clearly seen below in the 1861 article, the correct marking would
be 'Massachusetts Regiment
medicine chest'. The chest
was not withdrawn from the auction and was apparently sold 'as is' by the
auction house.
Daily National Intelligencer, (Washington, DC) Monday,
April 22, 1861; Issue 15,194; col A
The Excitement at Baltimore
John W. Garrett, President.
Note the
"Massachusetts Regiment medicine chest" at the bottom of the article,
vs. what is printed on the inside of the chest.
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