Or I think so, not sure if that's what is intended. If you hit a chest with an axe and have a lot of items in it, you will lose almost all the items you had in the chest but one of each.  I lost many saved up items over a mistake lol so careful with what item is in you hands when interacting with thing s.

While I don't think this is technically a bug, I think it would be wise for the game to not let you axe a chest full of items. The same thing happens if you axe a crafting station that is working on something - you'll lose everything in it.

Best to keep your axe out of your hands while you're around your stations!