Posted 9 years ago
gquiles24
(1 item)
My mother in law got this dresser from her neighbor that passed away at 90 or so. She said it was an antique and was all excited about getting it. A few years ago she too passed away and now my husband and I have had it. We have no idea if it truly is an antique, and if so, what kind? From when? Is it worth restoring or does it even need to be restored??? I'm a DIYer, should I simply repurpose it?
I took as many photos as I could think of. It has no bottom once all drawers are pulled out. Obviously dovetailed, by hand??? Has nice pulls and locks ( although not sure if I will ever find the key). I took pictures of the inside of the drawers how the pulls are attached. Has nice inlays, if I'm correct on that too. The two legs in the front are different from the legs in the back. Any info on this dresser would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!
Yes, definitely hand cut dovetails. The dovetails are larger, so I am guessing late 19th century. There are others here who can narrow down the date based on the size, and style of dovetails. From what I can see the hardware (pulls and locks) are original. The two bulbous legs in the front are quite attractive. I am not sure what you mean by inlays....I can't see any inlays in the pics, but i could be wrong.
How many pieces of wood make up the top? What type of wood is it? Cherry or Maple? From what I can see, this is a handsome piece that may be entirely original, I would NOT refinish or repurpose this. I would keep it as is and enjoy for what it is. Hope this helps.
I have a couple of comments. The dovetails are obviously hand cut as there is over cut beyond the scribe line. Although hand cut dovetails went on well into the 1930's & 40's, although machines were taking over and making them better and faster. Looking at where the drawer front and side meet, they are flush on this item. On an older item you would expect to see the side drop about an 1/8th" (+ or -) below the face. Now we could argue that none of that gives us a date and we would have a great argument. Then we have to look at the size of the joints, number of joints and whether the top and bottom joints actually lock the side in place. The joints you have were commonly called country dovetails because of the size and number. Nothing wrong with that and it would tend to speak for an item made anywhere from 1890 to 1940.
Now the hardware. The pulls I can't see clearly but they appear to be drop ring pulls. By that I mean a round ring that drops down into a groove on the rosette behind it. The manner they fasten I believe was first used in France. Appears to be folding tabs. These were also made with a simple cotter key that held them but didn't work well. Reproduction pulls like this are still made in Mexico so you need to pay attention to what you have and I suspect from what I can see yours would be original. Dating them may be an issue unless they are marked. The same fastener was used on Army field desks made in New York for WWII. They looked like a big foot locker but stood on end. When opened they had drawers and drop down table tops. I believe they were called leather metal as some parts were made of leather.
BHock45 asked about the top and I would also. In photo #3 the top appears to be a glue up with a veneer.
I also do not understand the inlay comment. If you are talking about the drawer front beading we need a closer picture. That looks totally machine made to me.
Lots of unanswered questions but adding up the parts of the whole.....I would say it will be an antique in a few years. Everyone has their own opinion about restoration. Like BHock45 I appreciate the item as it was made for the beauty of the wood.
Thank you so much for the detailed information. I am going to repost this with different pictures so you can see how the top is (was, because it comes right off I believe) attached. You guys definetly have me thinking do not use this as my kids storage items anymore lol. Thanks again! I will repost w more detailed pics, maybe I can get more answers.
I have reposted new pictures. As I took the top off I found a signature underneath it. I had originally looked everywhere else for a mark or anything that would tell me something about the piece. Finally you asked for the tops info and behold a signature. Anybody know who this might be??? Yes the pulls are the drop ring pulls. Top very much so looks to be a glued together piece with a veneer. To me its seems like a thin piece of ply, is that considered veneer. Does that depreciate my piece any? Also, I took pictures of the inside so you can see how it was built, if that helps any. The original owner placed that protectant sticker down on the inside of the drawers (I forget the name, but I left it on because it simply does its job). I really appreciate the info. Relieved to find such knowledge on this website.
Yes, that is basically a veneer. I was hoping for your sake it was one solid piece or at least two pieces glued up. I can't tell much more from the pictures, but that the inside of the piece looks machine-made. fhr will be able to tell you more I am sure. Thanks for sharing this and welcome to CW.