Abacus
Antique Dealers: Antiques & Reproductions
Can
you tell the difference between an antique and a reproduction?
Does it really even matter?
There’s
nothing wrong with good quality reproductions. You
just want to make sure that you know that’s what
you are getting. Here are some tips to help you tell
them apart.
Wood.
Antiques tend to not be made using one type of wood.
Why? It simply didn’t make economic sense to
use expensive wood such as mahogany in areas where
no one would ever see it. That’s why the bottoms
of drawers and joints of antiques might have lesser
quality woods such as pine, maple. Reproductions tend
to be made top-to-bottom from one wood and can be
heavily stained to hide a poor quality wood. Check
the underside, if the wood seems the same throughout
the piece, it may be new.
Upholstery
stuffing. Up until late early 20th century, horsehair
and hay were used to stuff upholstered furniture.
Synthetics such as foam were introduced around 1920s.
Keep in mind that the horsehair or hay may have been
replaced in an antique during an earlier reupholstering.
It’s not necessarily bad, it’s just no longer
in original condition.
Signs
of wear. Do the signs of wear make sense? An antique
chair will show increased signs of wear at the end
of the arms where the hands would naturally rest more
so than underneath the arm. If the wear is consistent
through the piece, it’s likely a reproduction
that has been distressed to appear old.
Signs
of age. Look for signs of cracks caused by shrinkage.
They indicate that the wood has expanded and contracted
over time. This is normal for an antique.
Antique
marble. To find out if the marble is original to an
antique, check the back of the piece. If the cut line
at the back is jagged, the marble is likely original
to the piece. In the 18th century, the tools to cut
marble straight were not yet available. If the marble
is smoothly cut, it’s likely post 18th century.
Hand
carving. Run your finger along the carving. Is it
bumpy or smooth? Hand carving is uneven and asymmetrical.
Machine carving is smooth and symmetrical.
Dovetailing.
Handmade 18th century dovetails are large and uneven.
Machine-made dovetails are thin and even.
Construction.
Phillips screws, staples and fiberboard are all tip-offs
to reproductions. On antiques with large surfaces
(tables, trunks, armoires), furniture makers used
wide boards with an uneven width. Reproductions use
narrow boards with an even width.
Gluing.
On older pieces, cabinetmakers would reinforce glued
joints with dowels, mortise and tenon etc. to ensure
that they were good and sturdy. Poor quality reproductions
will often only be glued which down the road will
lead to them falling apart. Slip a piece of paper
between the joints to see if it is reinforced.
Hardware.
Vintage hardware has patina. It doesn’t have
a lacquer finish to protect it from tarnishing and
it isn’t shiny and new looking.
Rebuilt/refurbished/reproductions.
Rebuilt furniture has some new elements added to it
such as new shelves, backs on an armoire. It’s
common in a lot of French country furniture around
today. Refurbished furniture has been restored. Either
the wood has been refinished or the upholstery, caning,
rushing replaced. Reproductions have no old aspects.
They are completely new. Whether something is rebuilt,
refurbished or a reproduction is not necessarily a
negative, just as long as you are know that you’re
not buying an antique in original condition.
Insert
caning versus hand caning. Inset caning (post 1900)
has a spine bordering the caning. Hand caning (pre-1900)
doesn’t have a border. Every now and then, hand-caned
pieces were converted to inset caning when a hand-caner
was not to be found. Check the underside of the piece
to see if it’s been converted. The underside
will reveal a series of holes that were used for the
hand caning.
Buying
reproductions. Buying good quality reproductions eliminates
the frustration of hunting for the right piece. Having
something custom made ensures you get exactly what
you want. For example, the narrow dimensions of antique
armoires 15 to 17 inches don’t suit today’s
electronic equipment. Some dealers, including myself,
do offer custom reproductions to overcome this predicament.
Buying
antiques. The good news about antiques is they can
be less expensive than reproductions because you’re
not paying for materials and labor costs at today’s
prices. Plus, each antique has a history. The patina,
nicks and bangs on antiques reveal a full life of
use just as the wrinkles on the face of an elderly
person reveal a life that has been fully lived.
