The citizen. (Frederick City, Md.) 1895-1923, 1906-12-28
i IMITATION ANTIQUES
THE WAY CABlNETMAKERS CAN COPY
ANCIENT FURNITURE.


"'eaned by an InquiSitivc Visitor
at Little Shop In an English
Country Village.
sober he is one of the most infer.
eStlhS men | know. Unfortunately he
IS sober only three days Il week. When
/ ask Him the reason he merely saws
he doesn't hncw. Yesterday when |
walked into the laboratory at the back
, OF BIS little village shop lie was Band
of Hope epitomized.
i There's something You'll like" he
+ SAID. indicating a small bureau, old
| spanish mahogany within new satin
WOOD vencer-so far unpoliSh2d-wfth-
4 out. The veneer was inllid with ebony
lines and kingwood bands. The accu-
racy of the iointing was wonderful.
the finish perfect
You must come in again when I've
/ stained ana polished it," he went on
/ "and then You'll think it one of the
best Queen Anne pieces eXtant."
] Don't your customers ever find YOU
OUT" | asked.
Lord, no. sir, When you've pulled
seventeenth century furniture to pieces
all your life ANA learned the things the
lemons and mortiScS ANA the finish tell
you, its easy enough to get the right
effect. The puhlic hasn't any judg-
ment, and, for that matter. many of
B | I,
ter
But this veneer-so very ncw," l
! hazarded.
All, wait until you see it toned down
and the drawers fitted with Il set of
old Boule handles ana Scutcheons Eve
got by ne ana few little dents ham
mcrcd here and there, especially about
/ the feet where they get kicked.
You'll not know it then. See that lit
tie black knot I've left on the face of
the third drawer? That knot would
take in all Wardour street"
He is always frank with me about
! his fakes. He seems to take pride
in being able to deceive a trained eye
and Il satisfaction in explaining his
deXtcrity.
| left the bureau and began eXamin-
ing a hoary looking oak settle gray
with age.
Looks ancient, doesn't it," he OBJ
served.
"LooksH wondered. surely it's
genuine"
He shook his head with wise old
smile ITS as genuine as dilute nitric
acid can make it. oh, you needn't go
by the panels. They're purposely
warped with hot ammonia The sun
and rain do the rest-bleach it, you
know
But the carving?" l argued Its
almost cffaced in places"
at would he after half an hour with
a sand blast, little thing of my own
contrivance The worm holes | make
with very fine punch. Beginners use
shot. but that's clumsy way OF
course the timbers it's made of are old
They are bits of a Charles |. table
mostly. The hinges are ordinary trade
copies that have lain in the wet all
summer and got nicely rusted, and If
you were to draw the screws that hold
them you'd find they were rusty, too.
and had no points. Those | filed off
and then hammered the heads bit"
81 didn't know you-treated metal
as we'll as timber" | admitted.
Sometimes See that fireback"
went to the corner indicated and
scrutinized the fireback. As far as /
could tell, it was beautiful specimen
OF hammer work bitten and worn by
over two centuries of use, as its date.
1857, seemed to show.
q bought Il dozen of those of differ
ent dates from a man who makes
them. They're only cast. but after
they've had a bonfire over them in my
yard for week or two they get soft
and look right enough. don't they"
l admitted that they did. flinching a
bit, though, at the adjective he used.
"There's a regular trade between the
manufacturers of faxed antiques and
the country dealers-more than with
the London ones. Why? Well, the
manufacturers have discovered that
people go into the country districts
now hunting for antiques. They think
the things they pick up there must be
genuine The simple countryman In
spires confidence. There's nothing
hardly that can't be initiated" he went
on. Its merely a question Of time
Iii % 20 only hVF
accident, or talking as I'm doing. that
the facts discovered. But when man
knows he can take in an expert It's
difficult for him to keep it to himself
that is, if he's got sense of humor.
Do you think that Syrian gold work
they had at the Louvre would have
been known as a forgery if somebody
hadn't talked? No. indeed! There's
china, now People always think It's
above suspicion. but you just look at
those two china cows on the shelf
there Ones genuine old Stafford. The
other isn't. Can you tel the differ
ence?'
| used pocket magnifying glass
this time. but at the end Of several
minutes | came to the conclusion that
ney were identical and said so,
81 gave one and nine for the imita-
ton one, but can't tell which now"
he admitted.
"And the selling priceY I inquired.
ask guineas each. One of them's
worth that After all, it doesn't really
matter. fol. there's no difference be