How do I find out if my dresser is an antique?
Question:I have aquired a dresser that I would like to find more info on. It has a raised vine-like carving detail on the drawers. I don't know anything about antiques and have no idea how to even start to find the info. I am really interested in learning more about this piece as I have never seen anything like this. Any ideas?
Answers:
As an antique dealer specializing in furniture, there are some sure ways that require looking at the unfinished wood of the dresser. Wood ages and mellows over time and areas such as drawers and the furniture's interior (its' inside frame) are almost never stained. The raised vine-like carving is called an Applique or Onlay (larger or smaller) decoration. These carvings dont distinguish it as an antique though by itself, and could merely be a newer piece in traditional style. Furniture makers sometimes attempt to bring new furniture a vintage look by giving it a patina appearance. Patina is that mellowing that only comes with age, and its' more evident on edges and crevices facing up and especially on unfinished wood.
Furniture may have the stamp marking on the back describing the manufacturer, where made and date, but often it's a number or letter combination sometimes with 'walnut' in black stamp lettering. Often furniture has no label even when factory made a century ago. You may send photos to oldwoodmarket to identify its' style and period of origin within a couple decades.
try an antique shop
if its a quality antique it will have a date and company name stamped either on the bottom or the side. if its hand made by a woodworker then its hard to tell youll have to get a pro. which i am not i just know that cuz i got an antique dresser also
go to ebay and look at dressers for sale that are equivelent to yours . ask the seller q's like how old is the dresser. go to antique site and look for similar dresser and ask q's there as well.
Take a pitcher of it and take it to a antique dealer and ask them to look at it. you might even take it to a furniture store.
Technically, a piece has to be 100+ years old to be classified as an antique. Most Victorian furniture was ornately carved and had marble tops.
Yours sounds like it could be from the 1930s-1950s.
Look on the back, and also on the inside of the drawers to see if you see the manufacturer's name. If you do, research that name on the web. You may find out when the piece was made by finding out when the manufacturer was in business.
Other than that, you could take a good picture of it and visit your local antique store. Most people who work there are knowledgeable about such things.
Take it to a antique store, preferably one that specializes in antique furniture. If this isn't possible you could take some detailed photographs and bring those to the store instead to get an opinion.
Look at the little details. Does it look like the wood was carved by hand or done by a modern machine? Check the drawers. Are there dovetails, and are the done well? Also look for or at nails. Antique pieces are not perfect. You will see signs of unusual nails (not like the nails manufactured today), no staples, solid wood and many times a bit of unevenness in the carving. I would suggest getting a few books from your library for research and also looking at local antique shops for similar pieces.
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