Is this antique?

A donator told us this is antique. Opinions? Thanks.

 

Maybe...
An 'Antique' is 100 years old.
Stand by for Brad and others for help.

 

Reproductions of almost everything have been made. We'd need to see underside of chair and of feet, and maybe more to tell if new or old. Keep in mind that age isn't the most important factor in value; how much collectors want a given type is very important. I can't see any signs of age on the chair but then I'm fairly furniture-ignorant.

 

That sure looks like a newer spayed on Urethane finish.

 

I think it's trying to be something like this, which I believe is called a Tub Chair, and this one dates to 1900-1915, so... but I see a difference in finishes, as you point out, Rayo. Re-finished or reproduction? More pictures, please? I can learn from this!

 

Here's a repro that's a bit busier:

https://wanelo.com/p/19480992/1800s...ay-top-rail-19th-century-louis-xvi-large-size

 

Sure is. So that's a modern repro of the Louis/etc? I don't belong to that site. Maybe I should sign up. Apparently they made repros in the early 1900s, too? So you could have an antique repro. Sure, actually, nothing new in that, now that I think on it.

 

Around here they have a hard time giving dining room chairs away, if they're split from the original set. I'd be guessing 1930s on the chair, but that's pure WAG, doubly so since we can't see the underside.

 

Might barely be antique. Teens-20s

 

So Brad, in the teens-20s... they were repro-ing the older styles, then, right? Do you think that, if well-made, are the almost-antique repros more valuable than, say, good repros made yesterday, or... how does that work, please?

 

Not really a reproduction of anything historical. The teens were the beginning of the period where American makers began to create new traditional style furniture using borrowed traditional elements. Some of this was very good quality. Others, not so much. It really depended on the maker. It is pretty much the same today. Good reproductions by, say, Kittinger or Baker are going to be better than most anything out there, old or new. In general, old furniture is built better than new furniture but this does not hold true across brands. There was a lot of poorly made old furniture as well as newer. Most 19th century or earlier furniture is pretty well made, if not always of good design. There is more variability in quality of 20th century furniture.

 

Thank you!
So. Quality is the touchstone. I do think I get that.
VeryThanks, VB.

 

Most 19th century or earlier furniture is pretty well made,

I am pretty sure there was the same amount of poorly made stuff but it has not survived. What we see today is the surviving fittest.

 

The seat looks brand new. Underneath looks brand new, so it is definitely re-furbished or a reproduction. We just don't want to charge more than it's worth or it will sit here for a very long time. (Thrift store). Here are more photos:

 

I am beginning to think this is probably a reproduction. Quality of the carving is a bit off for an old piece. Value really is about the same whether old or new. If old, it is not old enough to be a valuable antique. The value really is in the functionality.

 

I'm looking around Craig's List and Ebay and 1920's chairs similar to this (assuming this is) are close to $500. Is this what everyone else has seen around? I really need to visit antique shops and start learning the local market.

Thanks again for all of your help. Your honest opinions are a HUGE help to me, being a beginner! If something is worthless, just tell me. No feelings hurt whatsoever!

 

In my market, I would be lucky to get $50.00 old or new. We rarely sell any single chair for over $100.00. Your market may be better.

 

Really educational thread!

 

Not really. We have antiques that aren't selling at all. We have the chair at $75. I think that's pretty fair. I think it's the economy that is affecting the sales. People aren't collecting, at least not here.

 

In my opinion it is fashion and circumstances that effect the market. Not the economy unless it is really tanking, because there are always large numbers of people who are not living on the edge of insolvency.

People are buying stuff, just not traditional antiques and antique style stuff. Look at all the old furniture that sells with a crappy coat of paint on it. Young people setting up homes want what their peers want. Not what their parents had.

For people with disposable income, needing stuff or having room for it may be more important than price. I'm soaking up spare money buying silver and small items to keep, within reason the price is not important so much as the quality, rarity and space available.

The local economy can be vitally important if your town is dependent on one major trade like steel or car making, because these can dry up and blow away, leaving huge numbers of people out of work till some other industry moves in to soak them up, but I want to assess the economy I go to a local shopping area, and look at the car parks filled with healthy looking cars and shops bustling with customers.
They just are not buying traditional antiques, I have sold a 50s anglepoise lamp for more than a Georgian chest of drawers because it's what people want. I have sold an industrial multi drawer parts cabinet with no esthetic appeal whatsover for more than I could get for a roomful of Victorian furniture.

Crusty old dealers, do market research. Go to an estate agent or several (realtors, you'd call them) and pretend you want to buy a place for your young upwardly mobile child or grandchild, whichever seems feasible, and view the homes of young, upwardly mobile people that they try to sell you. See what they are buying in the way of furniture and knick nacks and sell those. Put all the current stock in a convenient barn and bring it out again when fashions change in 20 years.