Historical information

The chest was constructed to allowable dimensions for storage in the ship's hold. The sturdy watertight construction afforded protection for the chests contents. It can be imagined that these would be household utensils, items of clothing and the most treasured ornaments as space permitted. It is likely that the contents included some building tools and as well, implements which Christian Ziebell used in his trade as a butcher in Bruel, thereby enabling him to undertake profitable work on his arrival in Australia.

Significance

This object is of primary significance. The Koffer was constructed to allowable dimensions for storage in the ship’s hold. The sturdy watertight construction afforded protection for the Koffer’s contents on the voyage aboard the Privislaw from Hamburg, Germany to Hobsons Bay, Australia in 1850. The Koffer held the precious necessities for life for Christian Ziebell's family at their new destination. It is likely that the contents included some building tools as well, implements that Christian used in his trade as a butcher in Bruel, thereby enabling him to undertake profitable work on arrival in Australia. The wooden Koffer was airtight, so if lost overboard it would be retrievable. Some were fixed to the ship’s deck. After they settled at Westgarthtown the Koffer continued to contain the precious documents through each generation. Only the current owners saw the contents in each generation, and the children always regarded it as a “treasure chest”, which was always locked and out of bounds for them.

This German-made sea chest, dating from the late 1840s, holds exceptional historical, cultural, and interpretive significance as an original migration object belonging to Christian and Sophia Ziebell during their maiden voyage to Australia.

Serving as the family’s personal storage trunk aboard the Pribislaw in 1849, the chest would have functioned as a container for clothing, tools, and essential belongings. Later it served as storage for family archives and Lutheran church committee papers.

Constructed in the robust mid-19th-century German style, the chest likely features oak timbers, dovetail joinery, and iron fittings typical of sea-going koffers of the period. Its painted decoration, including the name “C. Ziebell” in large black charcoal script, provides strong, direct provenance and reflects both ownership and pride in family identity.

Such personalised embellishment was common among German migrants who decorated their chests during periods of spare time aboard the ship.

As one of the rare surviving objects directly associated with the Ziebell family’s migration story, this chest embodies themes of aspiration, hardship, cultural continuity, and settlement.

It is a tangible link between the family’s Mecklenburg origins and their new life at Westgarthtown, offering powerful interpretive value for understanding early German-Wendish migration and daily life at sea. Built to specifications for sea voyaging it is also a reminder of the planning required prior to considered migration.

Its survival enriches the museum’s capacity to convey the lived experience of Christian and Sophia Ziebell and the foundational story of the community they helped to establish.

Physical description

Large wooden trunk/koffer. Base is rectangular, and lid is rectancular to fit the base but curves between the front and back. Morticed corners; protruding base with beveled edge. Supported by profiled runners with four built-in feet. Handle for carrying on each end, and locking mechanism on front.

Inscriptions & markings

'C. Ziebell' written in large font on back of chest