Cedar Wood Chests

Cedar wood is known for its distinctive scent. Cedar wood is also known to repel moths, therefore over it has become popular for the storage of clothing, especially wool clothing. Cedar chests were carved from a single piece of wood and were used in ancient Egypt to store their gold treasures and to ensure preservation of their papyrus documents. During the Renaissance in Europe, when one-piece carving was replaced with chests that were made of planks and wood panels, cedar chests became more popular. The colonists used cedar chests as their luggage when crossing the ocean. Then as America grew, the cedar chests became popular not only as storage for clothing but as furniture; they were made to be multipurpose. A storage chest could also be used as a bench.

Cedar wood chests are also known as hope chests. They represent all that is important about life, they can hold memories of the past such as christening outfits and contain dreams of the future such as linens and quilts and maybe even a bridal gown.
In today`s society, a female may use the traditional hope chest, even though she may never marry since the items stored in one will be used as she establishes her independence. The same can be said for today`s males, though they may use a cedar trunk instead of a cedar wood chest. The trunk can also hold their memories, old baseball uniforms and hockey jerseys and their future dreams.

Antique cedar chests need to be 100 years or older to be considered antiques. The antique cedar chest invokes of sense of history and tradition and help make a house a home. They are always in style and functional and add a touch of sophistication to a room. Besides sitting at the foot of the bed and being used to store extra blankets, they can be moved to another room to serve as a coffee table or a side table or used as additional seating.

In recent years, Amish furniture has become known for it`s beauty and durability and the same has held true for the Amish cedar chest. These chests are purchased not just for their size but for their beauty. The chests will maintain their beauty and become an heirloom. The Amish cedar chests will add beauty to any room.