ANTIQUECOLLECTING

Oak and Country Furniture � 19th-Century Cattle PicturesSettles � Slipware � Pewter Decoration

SEPTEMBER 2013

OAK AND COUNTRY FURNITURE BOTHmake emphatic statements aboutdomestic lifestyle. Their vernacularcharacter has an enduring period appeal.In recent years a special popularityseemed to insulate them from the declinethat affected other periods. People wholive in the country, some of whom furnishin response to a period house, might claimto be more consistent in their taste thancity and suburban dwellers concernedwith keeping up appearances. A look ofage and possible continuity suggestsresistance to transient fashions andmodernism. However, oak and countrypieces are not entirely immune to marketforces. Fortunately, for the lifetime of theACC Antique Furniture Price Index, whichstarted in 1968, oak and country furniturecomprised two of the seven categoriesfrom which the Index is composed, so

there is a record of their performance.Figure 1 illustrates their superior butparallel pattern in comparison with theoverall ACC Antique Furniture Index,which includes later periods and styles.The Mars Bar graph is there to provide arecord of comparative retail inflation.

Although there is some overlap, themajor difference between the twocategories is that the pieces chosen forthe oak index are mainly taken from themid-to-late 17th century and are classicexamples of the output of its joiners andcraftsmen, such as wainscot chairs, theside chairs often called backstools,moulded front chests, coffers, courtcupboards, refectory tables, side tablesand very early dressers. The countryindex, on the other hand, uses mainly18th century and later pieces made byrural craftsmen in emulation of cabinet-

makers’ town styles, as well as gatelegtables, chests, corner cupboards, bureauxand fruitwood pieces. Oak comprises amainstream period of its own thatpreceded the advent of walnut. Countryis a category of longer durationembracing different styles derived fromtown originals and vernacular furnitureof uniquely rural output, like theWindsor and the Mendlesham, usingcountry woods including oak and walnut.

For quite a long time country furniture,which was very undervalued when theIndex was started, outperformed thelonger-established and higher-value oakin terms of increased price index. Oak,which had started well, and had a longhistory of attention from period furnitureconnoisseurs, fell behind the countryfigures in growth terms for most of the1990s decade, but has caught up againrecently. Both categories were well aheadof the overall figures at the end of 2012,probably due to the collapse of themarket for routine Georgian mahogany,Regency and later Victorian output. Thereis a particular strength about the likingfor vernacular and early furniture thatmaintains a sturdy demand for it, even ifon a diminished scale. Although thegraphs in the Figure 1 chart clearly showthat in the last four or five years bothtypes have suffered from a similar falling-off that brought down the main Index, it

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Oak and CountryFurnitureThe ACC Indices and the Market

by John Andrews

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COMPARISON OF OAK and COUNTRY FURNITURE

Antique Furniture Prices based on ACC Index

Oak

Country

Mars Bar Index

Figure 1. Graph of ACC Antique Furniture Price Index 1970-2013 with comparison of Oak and Country Indices.

has not been to the same extent.The reasons for the falling-off are quite

complex. We all know that apart from thework of top designers and cabinet-makers,most antique furniture has been in thedoldrums since 2001. The ACC Index graphillustrates that all too clearly. But for a fewyears oak and country furniture wasthought to be unaffected by the voguechanges adumbrated by lifestyle maga -zines and the smaller interior’s addictionto bare modernism. After all, some rusticpainted furniture of scuffed appearancehas been fashionably expen sive for sometime, even when not par ticu larly old.Scuffing has become a skill comparable totraditional surface finish ing. One mighttherefore think that a charming fruitwoodtable of 18th cen tury date, getting moreand more difficult to find, would maintainand even improve on its high point of theearly 21st century, but this is notguaranteed. One can un derstand why thedecline applies to plain oak wainscotchairs, which languish at many specialistauction sales: they are big, chunky chairsneeding a lot of room to provide not verycomfortable seating. Unless possessed ofexceptional regional carving they do notgenerate much domes tic enthusiasm; theyare of aca demic historical interest. Countryside tables and lowboys of lively colour donot need the same kind of space and areuseful incidental pieces. Yet many are justas hard to move at auction; why shouldthis be?

The demand for oak and countryfurniture is associated with thefurnishing of country house and cottageinteriors, but the prosperous housingmarket of London and the South East isdominated by town, rather thancountry dwellings. Estate agents havewritten that although there areattractive and spacious countryproperties for sale, they are not movingquickly. Additionally, a move away fromtraditional historicism in furnishing hasbeen a feature of the last decade ormore, remarked on by younger socialobservers. This and restricted space havereduced the demand for antiques,particularly bulky oak buffets andcupboards, quite apart from the largerefectory dining tables no longerneeded for daily consumption of meals.A single example of antique furnituremay be used for interior decorativeeffect but the modern approach iseclectic, mixing old with new, so thatconsistency of period style throughout isno longer the case. The decline of theformal dining room in favour of kitchenor sitting room consumption of food

has reduced the demand for sets ofdining chairs and tables of any period.There has been a shift in the furnishingof interiors that has caused the long-held desire to present a traditional viewof taste and enhanced social standing tobe dropped unceremoniously. Thesechanges require much more analysisthan can be effected here.

Before this becomes a dirge ofunreliev ed gloom, however, there arereasons for adopting a good deal ofoptimism about recent moves in themarket for selected kinds of oak andcountry furniture. One of them is thefact that any piece of merit in terms ofquality of craftsmanship and attractionof appearance is snapped up rapidly atprices indicating little restraint on thepart of buyers. There are pieces andtypes that still spark off demand. It is thedull bulk of routine, lacklustre furniturethat drags down the statistics anddepresses trade and auctioneers byremaining unsold. The market is much

more discriminating than it was a decadeor two ago. Following the withdrawal ofsome top auctioneers from this field,opportuni ties are less frequent. Butthere are still some special auction sales,and Wilkin son’s of Doncaster, in whichexcellent pieces feature. There is a stronggroup of very good dealers specialisingin this furniture. The dedication of asmaller band of enthusiasts is undimmed– this issue of the magazine is always apopular one. It may therefore be usefulto look at particular categories offurniture from oak and country stablesto see which of them are runners, whichare merely strolling along, and theirprospects in the form of the followinglist:

– The court cupboard, the buffet and therefectory table, all three now associatedwith the dining room rather than theoriginal hall location of the cupboard,have been affected by the change inapproach to domestic life and avail able

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Figure 2. A Charles II small oak court cupboard, Westmorland. 119 wide x 54.5 deep x 140cm high, (461⁄2wide x 21 deep x 55in. high). This is an unusually small example of a Westmorland court/press cupboard.Traditionally the decoration is confined to the upper panels and frame, invariably including initials anddates. Its abundant carving and small size put it outside the normal price frame of plain larger examples,which are not popular at present. Sold for £8,125 inc. premium. Courtesy Bonhams Chester.

space. High grade examples withnotable carved decoration are theexceptions because they satisfy theinterest of specialist collectors andcurators. Regional motifs can sparkavid enthusiasm. But for routineexam ples early recovery is unlikely.Many refectory tables were made inthe 19th and 20th centuries to meetthe popular demand for a style nowout of fashion. These have lost theirattraction.

– The same appreciation of decora -tive and regional carving applies towainscot chairs and to sets of 17thcentury chairs, whether backstool,Derbyshire, or moulded-back sidechairs. Again, full recovery will take aradical change in attitude but someLancashire backstools with carvedpanels are holding up very well.

– Joint stools need to be decoratedwith fluted legs and carving toachieve high prices, or at leastfeature bold turning and not havelegs made up from staircase balusters.Victorian copies are common. Stoolsof the boarded type are rare andexpensive. But stools are versatiledomestically, doubling as occasionaltables, so genuine period joint stoolshave recovery potential.

– The presence of fruitwood, yew,sycamore, elm, walnut and othercountry woods has a markedupward effect on prices, as do inlaysand attractive mouldings. Thesefeatures are to be cherished as theymake for good investment.

– The dining room of country furnish -ing, with high dresser, gateleg tableand sets of country chairs, whetherspindle or ladder backs with rush seats,is in abeyance at present. Low dressersare more valued than high dresserswith racks. Early Windsor chairs of 18thcentury date, particularly yew combbacks with cabriole legs, are anexception. If attributable to a makerlike Pitt or Hewett, or of similar design,no limits apply. The dining room islikely to continue to lose importance,affecting its furniture, but the dresseris a perennial favourite not necessarilyconfined to the dining room and islikely to recover quite quickly.

– Chests of the coffer type haveestablished a niche for the retentionof duvets and bedclothes at the endof a bed. Carving is important, butlook out for Victorian ‘improve -ments’. Chests of drawers withgeometrically moulded fronts arebeing undersold at gift auction

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Figure 4. A Charles II oak dresser, late 17th century, with eight geometrically-moulded drawers around a central cupboard door between vertical panels. An earlylow dresser and as such very desirable. £15,000. Courtesy Christie’s South Kensington.

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Opposite above. Figure 3. A Charles II oak‘wainscot’ armchair, late 17th century, probablyDerbyshire, the scrolled top rail with initials ISIbelow a coronet and with side ears, the panelwith stylised tree and leaf design, with down -swept arms and baluster legs. The carving andregional attribution add significantly to value.Again, plain examples are not popular. £4,375.Courtesy Christie’s South Kensington.

Figure 6. A George III yew and fruitwood Windsor armchair, with elm seat,Thames Valley, c.1800. The yew wood and the more sophisticated design,especially the pierced splat, should be compared with the previous example,figure 5, illustrating the reasons for the difference in price. £3,750 inc.premium. Courtesy Bonhams Chester.

Figure 5. A George III ash and elm high back Windsor armchair, c.1770, withcabriole front legs and simple shaped splat to the comb back. £700 atDreweatt Neate, Donnington. If it were made of yew with elm seat, had amore sophisticated splat and had cabriole rear legs the price would escalate –see figure 6.

Figure 7. Bonhams lot 962 Fruitwood mouldedfront chest. A rare William & Mary fruitwoodchest of drawers, c.1700. Having a boarded topwith moulded edge, above three mitre-mouldedlong drawers, on extended stile supports, pinesides, 91 wide x 55 deep x 80cm high, (31⁄2 wide x211⁄2 deep x 31in. high). Its small size and thefruitwood made it much more desirable than alarger plain oak one. £2,250 inc. premium.Courtesy Bonhams Chester.

prices and have room for recovery.Chests on stands requiring space aredifficult to sell. Some room forimprovement in all chests, though.

– The plain oak slope-front bureau is asdifficult to sell as the mahogany one; itneeds an exceptional interior ofstepped drawers and pigeon holes toattract bidding. Not a good prospecteven though it should be.

– Corner cupboards, whether hanging‘mural’ or freestanding are not avidly

pursued. Open or glazed types withshelves for display are better than plainwood doors, even if curved. Not part ofthe uncluttered modernist approach tointeriors.

– The cricket table of countryprovenance has been doing well atauction if its construction andproportion are robust. Woods like elm,sycamore, yew and even pine arehighly valued. Bigger rather thansmaller versions are to be preferred. Agood prospect.

– Side tables are down to prices wellbelow those of a decade ago. Thesingle drawer side table, if of 17th-century oak, should have a moulded-panel drawer to improve its attraction.It is usually less expensive than thethree-drawer lowboy type. Turned legsneed to be of robust bobbin and/orbaluster forms; cabrioles must not bethin, bandy or their feet badlydamaged. The lowboy is essentially anearly 18th-century table used with amirror, either hung on the wall againstwhich it stood, or a dressing mirror on

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Below. Figure 9. A mid-18th century oak cricket table. English.Having a circular top above ogee-shaped friezes, raised on turnedtapering legs, joined by plain stretchers, 54 diameter x 65cm high.(211⁄4 diameter x 255⁄8in. high) Good cricket tables are doing well.£2,375 inc. premium. Courtesy Bonhams Chester.

Left. Figure 8. A George III barrel-back pine floor-standing cornercupboard. The upper-section having an open arch headed by akey-stone and flanked by stop-fluted pilasters enclosing threeshaped shelves, the lower-section with a slide above a singlepanelled cupboard door, restorations, a handsome prospectneeding some attention but dirt cheap – at £562 inc. premium.Courtesy Bonhams Chester.

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swivels, which stood on the table. Oakversions are going cheaply at auctionand have potential; fruitwood versionsare rare. This is a good sector to trawlfor bargains.

When a recovery in antique furnitureprices starts to take place – if, some

pessimists might say – smaller oak andcountry pieces of the types identifiedare likely to be amongst the leaders.Prices are more accessible than those offine 18th century walnut andmahogany, the vernacular nature ofconstruction sympathetic as well aseasier to under stand, and the tradition

in appearance culturally undemanding.Charm and lightness of surface havealways and will always be valued. Thereturn in popularity is likely to comeabout more rapidly than that of otherperiods. Enthusiasts will already knowthis; therefore, action should not bedelayed for much longer.

Left. Figure 10. A side table c.1680 of the oakperiod that has the double merit of being madeof walnut and its single drawer has a mouldedtwo-panel front. The boldly-turned baluster legsare joined by stretchers. A good example, sold for£1,573 in 2012, which was a bargain. CourtesyCheffins.

Right. Figure 11. An early George III oak lowboy.The rectangular top with rounded front corners,above an ogee-shaped frieze, enclosing one shortand two small deep drawers, raised on cabriolefront legs, and turned tapering back legs,terminating in pad feet, 78.5 wide x 52.5 deep x67cm high, (301⁄2 wide x 201⁄2 deep x 26in. high).Sold for a bargain £400 inc. premium. CourtesyBonhams Chester.