The Sussex Trug
by catherine, 5 December, 2008, 5 comments
In the days before plastic containers, the “trug”, a wooden basket, was the common way of carrying and measuring. They came in every size, from tiny up to a bushel. Although they were found all over the country, nowadays they are particularly associated with Sussex and Thomas Smith of Herstmonceux who “reinvented” this ancient style of basket in the 1820s using local materials. Queen Victoria made the distinctive, shallow garden baskets we are familiar with fashionable when she bought some at the Great Exhibition of 1851. Read more...