Thanks for letting me join your forum - Education Needed!

Hi Everyone...

Im Jonathan, 35 (not quite an antique just yet), and im based in the UK.

I keep coming across old vintage / antique pieces whilst on my travels and with work but sometimes I am at a complete loss to what im looking at! I do know my antiques but I keep getting items which I am at a complete loss with... So im here to try and further my education. Ive included some pictures of my latest find, and this is the type of items that leaves me scratching my head!

My best piece so far has to be my Wrigleys Chewing gum machine, its made of wood and has to date to c1900... It takes old British pennys and was originally wall mounted... Its been previously painted by the looks of it and its probably not worth a great deal, but it just amuses me every time I look at it! If theres any vending machine experts here which would like a look drop me a message, ive searched everywhere to find another and the only similar thing ive seen is in an old picture of a shop front!

So my quest for knowledge begins and ill enjoy posting on the forum and looking through everyone elses posts, if I can help then I will... I just dont want to make myself look daft in the process!

Jonathan!

 

Welcome to the forum. That looks like an Arts and Crafts item, somewhat Scottish Baronial, and also a commode, which is wierd.

 

Thanks for the welcome and the information afantiques... This one certainly confused me, it has got some age to it and I started to think it was a secret storage compartment that could have been covered with a cushion rather than a commode as it doesnt look very comfortable to use as one... Ive never seen a commode like it and ive never had to use one to test the comfort so id only be guessing!

 

Plus the use of the commode in domestic settings surely ended some hundred years before this thing was made.

 

Welcome, Jonathan!

 

Greetings, antikka / Jonathan!

 

Welcome! I'd like to see the beginning of the process to the use of this item...
The vending machine.

 

Welcome, Jonathan!

 

Did I miss something or did you give the dimensions of this thing??? Sorry, and BTW, a most welcome WELCOME!!!!!

 

Thanks everyone, Wrigley chewing gum pictures coming soon King of Things!

@Aquitaine, the dimensions of the chair are H95 x W82 x D79cm... Did you want them?

 

Thoughts only. (And the correct words aren't yet loaded into the brain yet)
I see quite a bit of repair.
The metal angles on the left side.
The four knobs on top appear to be different styles.
The top rails as well as the two inside rails appear to be newer for support.

First impression was a commode chair, but I think you are correct in thinking it isn't. All the ones I looked at had round openings to accommodate the chamber pot.

It reminds me of a chair that would be found in a Gothic style church.
I do not think this is Arts and Crafts.

Is the chair nailed together? What type of nails - hand made or machine?
Are the metal corners, (which I think were added later for support), are they screwed in? What kind of screws?

 

Welcome , Johnathan . It looks like it was trimmed in the front,wich makes me wonder if it isn't a conversion of some sort ,but what would it have been for originally ?

 

welcome

 

Welcome!
It sure looks like a commode-chair to me, but I have no knowledge of that subject, and would not care to guess what one might/might not look like, or whether or not your item is/is not useful in that context.
Perhaps hand-made in some country where such things might have been used after their use had been discontinued in other areas? But that is a guess, and I wasn't going to guess.....but I like guessing!