Excerpt Journal of Advanced Appraisal Studies - 2012

As I have done in past years, each week I will post a short excerpt from an article  which was recently published in the Journal of Advanced Appraisal Studies - 2012.  This weeks article was written by David Lindquist, noted antiques author and retail shop dealer from Whitehall Antiques, visit their website at www.whitehallantiques.com.

David's article is entitled Analysis of the Multi-Part Antique and walks the appraiser through the inspection process of multi-part case pieces. Next week I will feature an article by ISA Core course instructors Leon Castner, ISA CAPP and Joyce Newman, ISA CAPP on the Persuasive Appraisal.

All proceeds from the sale of the Journal support the educational initiatives and scholarships of the Foundation for Appraisal Education. The cost of the journal is only $55.00, a bargain for the amount of content supplied, and for a short time shipping is free.  The 2012 edition contains 19 articles and 300 pages of content. For more information visit www.appraisaljournal.org to order your copy.

David Lindquist writes:

Also important is the evident gap between the crown molding and the upper case — it sits “loosely” on the top, and it is neither integral nor attached.  Again this is what one wants to find, as from about 1765 onwards all crown moldings were separated from the upper case. With time it had become clear that all sorts of problems were developing by nailing the crown to the case. Splitting and other wood movement problems developed because all wood only shrinks across the grain — problems because the shrinkage of the case was from front to back, while the molding was shrinking top to bottom.  The integral crown was abandoned and replaced by the detached crown.

I always like to share my personal learning experiences. Were I in a client’s home, conscious of the balance of reasonable time spent for the value of a piece, I would have gone no further in my appraisal examination than a “let the fingers do the walking” examination of all outer edges for softness — the dulling of the original sharpness. That examination combined with all the other discovered consistencies would lead me to list it as authentic and place a value and move on. Buying a piece to sell in an antiques shop is not dissimilar in process from appraising — dozens of pieces must be examined in a day and only a few “winners” will be purchased, which can lead to the occasional “OOPS!”  This chest-on-chest we are discussing was purchased to sell in our Chapel Hill, North Carolina, shop. When it arrived, I walked behind it and nearly had a minor stroke — the next photo shows why.

Two problems leapt out, and they had to be researched in the authentication process. There is a vast change in the color of the oxidation across the back, and additionally the back of the detached crown is a very different color — yet all of the wood is deal and it is, if the piece is not a marriage, all of the same age and has been oxidizing (darkening) all at the same rate. The technical description is that there are two different oxidation problems:  disturbed oxidation and inconsistent oxidation.  Time to explore.

It is always helpful to start with what is right before pursuing answers to problems.  All woods exposed to equal amounts of air and dirt oxidize at the same rate, assuming they are the same type of wood. The back of the upper and lower case is deal. Furthermore the construction is identical:  two large boards overlapped by a smaller board — perfect consistency top to bottom.

Click HERE to order the Journal of Advanced Appraisal Studies - 2012 (or to order previous editions, 2008-2011).