Big Old Metal Tool Box with Chippy Red and Cream Paint educational gift Good as soap dishes or

Good as soap dishes or trinket trays if not on the table

I am not certain the age of this piece but know it has been held in a folk art collection for at least the past 25 years

and at 3 1/2 by 6 1/4" it's of a nice size for display

It became the first fraternity in the US to include both men and women when it adopted the "Beautiful Rebekah Decree" in 1851

best of all those beautifully carved untied laces

Big Old Metal Tool Box with Chippy Red and Cream Paint educational gift Good as soap dishes orTo me, this is about as perfect as an old tool box gets, large enough to hold anything and everything, and with a hard working life behind it but many years of use in it yet. But what really makes it is its fantastic surface, with red over cream over gray chippy paint on the front and top, and cream on the back and sides, with stenciled numbers too, and rust creeping in around the edges. Yum. The front latch still closes tightly, with room for a lock