American decorative arts · circa 1840-1900
Collecting stories, maker attributions, and auction finds from American Victorian furniture — organized as a reference library for collectors and researchers.
About the archive
Rare Victorian brings together years of object research, maker notes, auction discoveries, and restoration observations in a quiet, readable archive organized for collectors and researchers.
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For Sale ·
I received an email from Alyson wanting to sell her Renaissance Revival parlor set (contact me if interested) and was intrigued by it's history so I thought that I'd share. "This set was handed down to me by my Grandmoth
I haven't been using the Antique searches here on Rare Victorian ("Buy Antiques" link at the top of the page) in a long while and what I didn't know as a result is that most of them were broken. eBay changed the way the
ChairRenaissance RevivalRosewoodVictorianPhiladelphiaAllen & Brother
It's not often that you can definitively identify a maker for a particular piece of Victorian furniture and equally rare is identifying a piece's original customer. When lucky enough to have some of this information, you
Research ·
There are a lot of methodologies that people use to identify a particular piece's maker, but few of them drive me more bonkers than "based on the quality of the work it surely was made by so and so". Relative to what? Ho
You don't come across a signed, Rosewood Alexander Roux bed for $2k that often (current price with no reserve). It's not an overly grandiose bed in size or sophistication of design, but the carvings are exceptionally wel
Research ·
I recently purchased this original George Hunzinger receipt from 1900, which is two years after George Sr's death. Notice the "& Son" in the logo. I assume that this is an example of Hunzinger wholesaling to another
Auction ·
There must have been a few bidders that REALLY wanted this Victorian-era terrarium. Either they know something about it that I don't know or they had some excess money on hand that they wanted to part with. This terrariu
I know that I have been very silent in past weeks so I thought that I would give you an update on what's going on and give away a copy of a recently published book that will be of interest to many of you. My life has cha
Auction ·
press release: The following Monumental R.J. Horner Figural Mahogany Dining Room Set. 12 Pc. Figural carved set will be offered at Fontaine's Auction Gallery in Pittsfield MA, on May 21st 2011 at 11am EST. The set includ
For Sale ·
I get a lot of offers to buy Victorian furniture and recently I've been passing on them personally and handing the opportunity on to you. Here is a Neo-Grec three-piece parlor suite that I have not run across before. It
John JelliffNeo-grecRenaissance RevivalWalnutParlorSetSuiteBurl
For Sale ·
After having been in a private collection for 36 years, you can now own a piece of the Cummins Diesel estate from Columbus, Indiana. Possibly made by Leon Marcotte of New York in the 1860s, this credenza has all the high
CabinetCredenzaLeon MarcotteRosewoodBrassMapleNew YorkCumminsEstate