The traveling bag on display is believed to have belonged to the Chekhov family. It was donated to the museum by the widow of the writer’s nephew Sergey Chekhov. This canvas bag has a handle and two metal locks. The handle is wrapped in rope, and there are remnants of leather straps at the bottom.
Traditionally, a traveling bag was a large bag of a regular shape with two short handles and fasteners along the top edge. The first traveling bags appeared in the United States in the mid-19th century, during the railroad boom. Hardly any well-to-do American missed the opportunity to go on a short train journey across the country. Bulky rigid trunks were not suitable for such trips, and so the need for a convenient small bag arose.
The Russian word “sakvoyazh” which translates as “a traveling bag” originated from the French expression “sac de voyage” with the same meaning. The first traveling bags were made of old Oriental rugs and were appropriately called “carpet bags”. They were inexpensive but wore out quickly during trips. Soon, high-quality leather began to be used for bags along with a waxed cord for fastening, making this item of luggage affordable only for well-to-do travelers.
By the end of the 19th century, a traveling bag had become an attribute of doctors and electricians. Such a bag had a latch at the top, two large compartments inside, and a small button pocket. Anton Chekhov was a practicing physician and an active traveler, which is why he had several different traveling bags at his disposal.
A traveling bag was a feature of its time and was often mentioned in 19th-century literature, for example, in Anton Chekhov’s 1886 story “Carefully Disguised”,
