Spotting Fake Antique Furniture

Not all "antique furniture" is antique! -editors AntiqueWeb.com

By Michael Russell

If you love antique furniture, but you are not an expert, you are probably hounded by the fear of buying a fake. Your fear is shared in the antique-buying community; even experts and auction houses get fooled into buying fakes every now and then. There are several ways to protect your money and your reputation by observing the following recommendations made by antique furniture collectors and sellers.

Before you buy a number of pieces from a time period, it is advised to work only with a reputable furniture dealer. Take the time to visit old houses, antique fairs and museums too see good quality pieces until you get a "gut" feeling for the period's style and furniture design. Many long time collectors will tell you that their best furniture buys did not come at bargain prices; you still get what you paid for. Be wary of a bargain. Unless you are an expert, the piece is too good to be true if the price is. So if you see a piece that is extremely cheap or under priced, warning bells should ring in your head and handle the transaction with caution. Dealers do not usually put wrong prices on their items, so getting a bargain is quite unlikely.

Read up on the current market values of the items you are looking at. Fakes are not always cheap; in fact, they can be priced at the same level as the real ones to project credibility. But if the dealer cuts the price by a rather large percentage, like selling a $1000 chair for $700, look at the item very carefully and be skeptical. CONT'D

STICKLEY?

This article by Fred Taylor on Stickley furniture is a must read. -editor AntiqueWeb.com

WHICH STICKLEY?

Anyone who dabbles in older and antique furniture knows that the name "Stickley" is an important one in American antique furniture. And everybody knows that Gustav Stickley made much of the high priced Mission style furniture that currently enjoys so much favor in the auction market. Is that all there is to it? Not by a long shot.

When you see a tag marked "Stickley" or hear the auctioneer mention that the next piece is a "Stickley" piece, it doesn't mean you have found a treasure. You may have but you need to dig deeper. There were actually five Stickley brothers and they were all involved in the furniture industry in some way or another in various combinations in the late 19th and early 20th century. The five brothers were Gustav (1858-1942), Leopold (1869-1957), Charles (1871-1921), John George and Albert (d. 1928), all the sons of German immigrants. Gustav was the oldest and ultimately the most influential. He was the purist and the theorist who provided the artistic foundation for the rest of the clan.

In 1884 three of the brothers, Gustav, Charles and Albert opened the first formal furniture venture of the family in Binghamton, New York. It was originally called Stickley Brothers Furniture Co and later was known as Gustav Stickley Co. Charles left almost immediately after forming the company and opened his own operation with an uncle. Charles' new company was known as Stickley-Brandt, also head quartered in Binghamton. It originally made Victorian design furniture and then turned to the Mission style, specializing in chairs. This company went out of business in 1919, a victim of World War I and the dying Arts & Crafts market. Cont'd