According to the conservator and professors, it is plausible that the chest on display is a pastiche—a compilation of pieces from various time periods. Throughout the sixteenth century, cassoni's popularity waned. However, during the nineteenth century, the chests became fashionable again as William Bundell Spence, a prominent English collector, began dealing cassoni to collectors around Europe. At the time, many capricious collectors purchased pieces that they saw others acquiring, so Spence’s interest in cassoni generated a much more widespread taste for them. Due to the poor condition of most cassoni, artisans dismantled pre-existing cassoni and inserted their painted panels into new chests in order to appeal to Victorian buyers. Many cassoni displayed in museums today, such as this chest owned by the Mount Holyoke College Art Museum and this chest from the Bagatti Valsecchi Museum in Italy, were constructed in this fashion, but resemble authentic Renaissance pieces to the untrained eye. Although the featured chest is not painted, it is still possible that it was also constructed in this manner during the nineteenth century when cassoni reached the height of their popularity.

The conservator also mentioned that after World War II, various Italian artisans combined architectural aspects of destroyed buildings and furniture into new pieces. In order to stimulate the economy, these pieces were later passed off as authentic antiques to unsuspecting tourists.

No matter when or how the pastiche was created, this alternative history for the chest explains its inconsistent condition.