In collaboration with Dési van Rhee - Expert of Antiques and Curio
An antiques fair or auction can be overwhelming to the untrained eye, so we had a chat to one of Catawiki’s expert antiques and curios auctioneers, Dési van Rhee, about what she looks for in an antique, and what you can be on the look out for…
Eye-cathers
It’s the things that catch Dési’s eye that she knows are worth taking a closer look at. Usually it’s those pieces that are a bit different - an interesting shape or a model that you don’t see often will more often than not have a great story behind it. Some things can be eye-catching simply because they’re still in such good quality, and some because they tell a story about the past, or where the piece has come from.
How to get started
A great place to start when valuing something is to look out for a manufacturers mark or brand, or artist signatures (bonus points if you have both!). You need to know where something came from, or who made them, to figure out their value so these marks will help in your further research. A mark from a well know maker or artist could make a piece immediately valuable, but there are other factors that need to be considered before you come to a final price.
It's all about the ageing
Wooden pieces like tables or cabinets often show signs of ageing - but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing as these signs can tell you a lot about where a piece came from and how well it was cared for. Marks around the legs of a table can be from years of a wet cloth or mop brushing past on cleaning day, which can indicate that the table is an antique. A soft, natural looking shine on a wooden cabinet tells of hundreds of years of being hand polished by attentive maids in affluent households.
At the same time, a lack of ageing or damages could give away a lot as well. Mint condition antiques have had their authenticity questioned when they’re missing natural signs of wear and tear - like the marks inside a drawer that come from years of opening and closing. On closer inspection, it has turned out that some of these pieces were commissioned to well known design studios and spent years in pride of place in the home as a show piece, rather than a practical piece of furniture. Although they look like they were made yesterday, these beautiful pieces of the past always do well at auction.
Restoration
It’s common for an antique to have been restored at some point in its long life. Parts could have been added, taken away, repaired, or re-painted - as Dési says, imagine how we would look after 200 years! However, some restorations are acceptable and some are definitely not, so make sure you ask the right questions. You can always ask one of our antique experts, we will be able to tell you what work has been done and how this affects the value.
And as a final piece of advice for those looking to invest, you’ll never go wrong if you buy what you love! Even though they were made hundreds of years ago, antiques are still items that were made to be enjoyed. Money aside, that piece you had a love-at-first-sight moment with will add value to your life just because you get to look at it every day, so why not check out our antiques and curios auction today. You might just fall in love!