Is my Chinese antique Furniture Old? Is it valuable? #
Recently a customer sent me these photos of a Chinese “noodle cabinet,” which they purchased from an estate auction. Nice looking piece and I can see why they would buy it. Their specific inquiry, was pertaining to its age, value and authenticity. In other words an antique appraisal.
The question they asked in particular was of course the one I am asked most frequently:
- Is it old
- Is it valuable
Always the same question, or at least some variation on it like “is my Chinese antique furniture old?” Which is fine – its always nice to know what you have and if its a hidden gem or not. But the problem is how can you tell?
How can I tell if my Chinese Antique Furniture is old? #
The first question of “is it old” is quite easy to answer:
- YES
- Kind of
- Not exactly..
How’s that for being clear? Before going any further, you may wish to take a moment to read an old post from a while back entitled “Blurring the line further… How to tell if its a genuine antique?” which will explain just nicely some of the starter points we will consider here. Stop and have a read so you have a baseline understanding of where i am going with this.
BLURRING THE LINE FURTHER: #
At first glance this cabinet looks like a genuine antique in raw unrestored, original form. Now here is where it gets a little tricky. And in order to understand why, we need to look at how the supply chain works for the antiques world. (Click the title to read more....)
Finished yet? Ok, great. By now you are starting to idea that the answer is not always so black and white. Sometimes the simple answer, is just not so simple.
So – back to this cabinet. Lets talk about THIS piece specifically.
In this particular case, the actual cabinet itself is a very common tapered edge Chinese Noodle cabinet or “Mian tiao gui,” often called this as the shape of the cabinet itself or the hardware (depending on who you talk to) slightly resembles the shape of a noodle.
With lovely carved doors like this, it may be mistaken for a nicer, classier “scholar’s cabinet.”
But unfortunately its not. Its just a very common cabinet.
Lets trace it all the way back to beginning.
In un-restored form, a cabinet like this may be referred to by the workers as as a “la ji gui” (垃圾柜) which literally means “trash cabinet.” A Chinese country antique cabinet such as the one above, in un-restored form, built from common woods (value is often placed on better quality and even exotic hardwoods), of a non-descript style and in poor condition will often hold minimal value on its own, with its true worth being essentially as parts and raw materials.
From a materials cost perspective, a badly damaged cabinet will be cheaper to restore then to build new from scratch.
A “trash cabinet,” like the ones pictured above may often be worth more for their parts, then the sum.
If you read “Blurring the line” you know answering this question becomes even more difficult when you consider the awkward journey a piece my take as it travels through the “antique-reproduction” supply chain.
Putting on some makup and getting dressed up #
So in order to make a commercially viable product that can go in the warehouse, the showroom and eventually the customers home, the goal here is to “fix things up” to make them look nicer than they really are. In essense to “dress it up a bit.”
Here is a quick overview of what typically occurs in order to make that happen.
- Take a fairly standard poor condition country antique cabinet, ranging in age from 30 to 80 years old, which can be used for parts & materials
- Restore main structure, replacing damaged panels and other sections with replacement wood.
- Add in additional details to spice it up, like carved panels.
- Add shelves and drawers for additional functionality (easier to sell)
- Add a new lacquered finish to cover inexpensive woods, repairs, etc.
- Use aging technique so item does not look “too new.”
- Add detailed gold “miao jin” painting for an additional touch.
- Install new hardware.
- Tell customer it is Qing dynasty scholar cabinet, at least 150 years old and sell at a premium price.
- Finished!
The final product #
Voila! We end up with a nice, attractive, commercially sellable product.
But is it a genuine antique? Is my Chinese antique furniture old?
Not exactly.
Is this Chinese antique furniture worth anything? #
- The answer is still yes
Yes, that’s correct. The answer indeed is still yes!
However, perhaps not for the reasons you might expect. Its not going to hold the value of a genuine quality antique. That’s true. But it is still worth something in its own right.
Its worth something, because of the time and effort that an artisan put in hand-painting the gold trim and other details.
Its worth something, every time someone visits your home and remarks what a beautiful cabinet it is. Its a lovely piece and probably looks great in your place.
Its worth something, because you probably have a story about where and how you purchased it. Where you “discovered” it.
So while it may not be worth an extreme amount in dollars, money is not the only value of worth. Its a beautiful piece and would look great in any home, and you never know – in 100 years down the road it just might be someone else’s genuine antique!
And now you know how to tell if your Chinese antique furniture is real or not.
Still need a bit of help? #
We understand figuring these sort of things out can be tricky. Sometimes you just need the assistance of an expert. So why not reach out?
One Response
I have a authentic antique Chinese cupboard. Would you be interested in buying