A question about Prince Heinrich XIV Reuss

[Jmathews]

Greetings! When my grandma passed away, I inherited a chest from her. From what I have been able to translate, it looks like it belonged to Prince Heinrich XIV Reuss. The inside is made of soft, padded velvet. I have never seen a chest like this nor can I find any information about it online. Does anyone know if a chest like this would have had special purposes besides personal belongings and am I correct in who it belonged too?

I have attached some pictures, any help or insight would be appreciated!!

[HRHHermione]

I have no information, but I just wanted to say what a lovely family heirloom that is. Such an interesting piece! And it definitely looks like it could have interesting origins.

[gerry]

Originally Posted by Jmathews

Greetings! When my grandma passed away, I inherited a chest from her. From what I have been able to translate, it looks like it belonged to Prince Heinrich XIV Reuss. The inside is made of soft, padded velvet. I have never seen a chest like this nor can I find any information about it online. Does anyone know if a chest like this would have had special purposes besides personal belongings and am I correct in who it belonged too?

I have attached some pictures, any help or insight would be appreciated!!

I was also intrigued and found a wikipedia entry on this prince
Heinrich XIV, Prince Reuss Younger Line - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The sticker says it is the property of this prince but it seems his line has died out so that it could not be returned. Interesting would be the story how your grandmother got the chest: was your grandfather perhaps a soldier

[Jmathews]

Thank you for the replies and information! Unfortunately with my grandma's passing, I don't have too much information on exactly where or how she came across the chest. I know she got it around 50 or 60 years ago when my grandfather was in the Royal Air Force and they spent quite a while in Europe, but beyond that, the information is pretty limited..

[HRHHermione]

Originally Posted by Jmathews

Thank you for the replies and information! Unfortunately with my grandma's passing, I don't have too much information on exactly where or how she came across the chest. I know she got it around 50 or 60 years ago when my grandfather was in the Royal Air Force and they spent quite a while in Europe, but beyond that, the information is pretty limited..

It's probably fair to assume that he picked it up in connection with his military service at some point. That seems the most likely. During WWII, a lot of keepsakes from families were lost in that way. That's not to say your grandfather picked it up himself- He could easily have purchased it in a second hand shop or been given it by a fellow airman.

[Jmathews]

That's makes a lot of sense! My grandma was a pretty heavy antique collector so I would guess she got it from an antique store. This sure has been fun learning more about it and I really appreciate all the feedback and education!