Things you should know about antique furniture:

Of all the categories of antiques you can collect, furniture is among the most popular and practical. Many pieces offer you the alternative of using them either for their original purpose, or of adapting them to modern-day living.

At first furniture was made from solid wood, but as cabinet-making improved, the technique of decorating furniture by applying veneers (thin sheets of wood) developed. This was an economical way of using expensive woods, and allowed the maker to create decorative effects from the different grains and patterns (called figuring) of the wood. Veneered furniture has a carcass (solid body) made from a different (usually less expensive) wood. This secondary wood, as it's known, is most commonly pine or oak. Listed below are examples of the most frequently seen types of woods used for antique furniture.

Amboyna. Richly coloured wood with a tight grain. Used during the 18th century and Regency periods, nearly always as a veneer.

Beech. Brownish-whitish wood used in the solid from the 17th century for the frames of upholstered furniture, because it doesn't split when tacked. Also popular during the 18th and 19th centuries as a base for painted furniture.

Cherry. Orange-brown wood popular for American Queen Anne and Chippendale furniture. Usually used in the solid.

Chestnut. Ranges in tone from light to dark brown, much used during the 18th century for French provincial furniture made in the solid.

Caoromandel. A dark, boldly figured wood, almost black in parts, with pale striations, used mainly as a veneer for refined furniture of the Regency period.

Ebony. Dense, heavy, almost black wood, often used as a contrasting inlay in marquetry veneering.

Elm. Light brown wood, popular for Windsor chairs and provincial English furniture.

Mahogany. Rich golden-brown or red-brown wood, which became popular in England c.1730. There are several types of mahogany - San Domingan, Cuban, Honduras and Spanish are most common.

Oak. Deep, rich, chocolate-brown or pale golden-brown coarse-grained wood used predominantly in Britain from Middle Ages to late 17th century. Also used as a secondary wood on good-quality furniture.

Pine. Soft, pale, honey-coloured wood used in England and America as a secondary timber for drawer linings, and in the 19th century for inexpensive furniture (which was often painted).

Rosewood. Highly figured dark red-brown wood with blackish streaks. Popular during the Regency and Victorian periods in England for high-quality furniture.

Satinwood. Light, yellow-coloured West Indian wood, favoured during the late 18th century. Usually used in veneers as it was expensive, and sometimes embellished with painted decoration. Painted satinwood furniture was also popular in the Edwardian period.

Virginia walnut. Richly coloured wood resembling mahogany. Used in the solid and as a veneer on English and American furniture from c.1730.

Walnut. Nutty- or honey-brown highly figured wood used in the solid on English furniture from c.1660 to c.1690 and as veneers from c.1690 to c.1735. Walnut was also popular in America and in the Victorian era.

Yew. Red-brown hardwood used both in veneers or in the solid on the best English provincial furniture of the 17th and 18th centuries.

Colour and patina
A rich mellow colour is one of the most important features of any piece of furniture. The patina is the glow the wood develops over the years from an accumulation of wax polish and dirt.

Most furniture isn't the same colour all over - grooves and carving will look darker, surfaces exposed to sunlight may be lighter.
Proportions
The proportions are fundamental in assessing the quality of a piece and deciding whether it's 'right'.

A piece which looks too heavy on top, or has legs which are too big or small may well be a 'marriage'.
Small pieces are usually more desirable.
Construction
Early furniture was made using mortice-and-tenon joints held by pegs or dowels instead of glue or screws. This method was used until the late 17th century. Pegs were handmade and stand slightly proud of the surface.

Later machine-made pegs are perfectly symmetrical, and are either flush with the surface or slightly recessed.
From the early 18th century, joints were dovetailed and glued.
Until the end of the 18th century, when the circular saw was introduced, all wood was sawn by hand and has straight saw marks. After c.1800 circular marks may be visible on the surface of unfinished wood.
Screws
The earlier the screw, the cruder it will be.

The groove on old screws tends to be off-centre and the top irregular.
The thread is also irregular and open and, unlike modern screws, runs the entire length of the shank.
Dovetails
Dovetails are the triangular joints which slot together on the corners of drawers. They became progressively finer and can help with dating.
Drawers had channels in their sides and, until the 18th century, ran on runners set into the carcass.
Some drawers ran on the dust boards and had no runners.
From the Queen Anne period the runners were placed under the drawer at the sides and ran on bearers placed on the inside of the carcass.
Handles
Handles can provide a useful clue to dating, because styles changed from period to period.
It's common to find pieces with replaced handles. This isn't serious but it's preferable to have handles in keeping with the rest of the piece.
From c.1960 handles were secured by pommels and nuts.
Antique pommels were hand cast in a single piece of brass. The thread goes only half way up the shank, and the remainder of the shank is square-shaped. Modern pommels are made from brass heads with steel shanks and the thread runs the whole length of the shank.
The nuts used to attach handles in the 18th century were circular and slightly irregular. Modern nuts are regular and hexagonal.
Feet
Feet can give a useful guide to dating. However, centuries of standing on damp floors often causes feet to rot and many have been replaced.

Compare the wood of the feet with that of the rest of the body to decide whether or not they're original.
Locks
Early locks are usually of wrought iron, held in place with iron nails. From the 18th century, locks were steel or brass and secured with steel screws.
Locks are often replaced. This isn't serious, though it's better to have original ones.
Carving
Oak was relatively difficult to carve - but as walnut and mahogany became popular, carving became finer and more intricate.

Original carved decoration adds to the desirability of a piece.
Some pieces were adorned with later carving. These are far less desirable than those with original decoration.
Veneering
The quality of veneering has an important bearing on price.

Many pieces have quarter-veneered tops, where four pieces of wood create a pattern.
Banding - strips of veneers laid around the edges of drawers - was also popular. Depending on the way in which the grain of the wood runs, banding is referred to as straight banding, cross banding, feather banding or herringbone banding.
Inlay - Marquetry
A pattern made from veneers of differently coloured woods. Inlaying was popular on English and Continental furniture from the 17th century and can add greatly to the value of a piece.

Condition
Furniture in original pristine condition commands the highest prices and is always scarce.

Don't dismiss pieces with blemishes, as long as the wood itself has not been damaged. Surface spots can often be treated by a good restorer. The table may look rather scruffy but the wood itself is undamaged and can easily be repolished.
Woodworm
Small round holes in old furniture are a common sight in old furniture and show that the piece has at some stage been attacked by woodworm.

These need not put you off, provided the infestation hasn't structurally weakened the piece.
Active woodworm can be detected by pale-coloured powder in the wormholes, or on adjacent surfaces, and should be treated with a proprietary product as soon as possible.
Check periodically for signs of infestation.
Marriages
A piece of furniture made up from separate items which did not originally belong together is termed a 'marriage'.

The married parts may be of a similar period or one part may be later, or even modern.
Marriages are nearly always much less desirable than pieces in original condition.
Examine furniture in the way described to make sure it isn't a marriage.
Alterations
Furniture which has been altered is usually less desirable than that in its original condition. Among the most common alterations are large pieces which have been reduced in size. Freshly cut surfaces, repositioned handles, and plugged holes are signs of alteration.

Fakes
A piece of furniture can be described as fake if it deliberately makes you think it's older than it really is. Fakes made from new timber are usually easy to spot as the wood doesn't have the patina of age you would expect. Some fakes are made from old wood and these can be trickier to identify. Beware of any piece being sold as 18th century or earlier if it has circular saw marks. These mean the wood was cut after c.1800 when circular saws were first used.