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 A
Glossary of Antiques Speak
If you come across
any words that you think should be added to this glossary, please
let me know.
A-C
D-F G-H
I-L M-O
P-S T-V
W-Z
Antique:
usually any object over 100 years old
Arctophile:
teddy bear lover or collector
Armoire:
a very large and highly decorated cupboard or wardrobe
Arts and
Crafts Movement: a movement to improve the standards of
late Victorian craftsmanship
Art
Deco: the modernist style popular between the two
world wars and characterised by geometric forms
Art
Nouveau: introduced in the latter part of the
19th century and remaining popular until the start of the
First World War, it was characterised by elaborate design
and curving lines
Aubusson:
French tapestries produced in the town of the same name
BADA:
British Antique Dealers' Association
BAFRA:
British Antique Furniture Restorers' Association
Baroque:
a hugely flamboyant style of decorating furniture and other
objects popular in the 17th and 18th centuries. Typical
decorations used were cherubs, flowers, fruit, etc.
Biedermeyer:
a classical style developed in Germany in the 1820s,
particularly seen in furniture which is often made of blond
coloured wood
BHI:
British Horological Institute
Boulle
work: a technique perfected by Andre Charles Boulle
which used tortoiseshell and brass in marquetry decoration
Buyers
Premium: a percentage added to the final bid price
by an auctioneer and charged to the buyer - i.e. if you
successfully bid £100 for an item and the buyers premium is 15%
you will pay £115
Cabriole
leg: popular in the 18th century, the design of a
furniture leg based on a curved animal's leg.
Chasing:
a hammered decorative technique used on metal
Chatelaine:
Chains, worn at the waist, made to carry keys, a watch, an etui,
etc.
Chesterfield:
a large button-backed sofa
Chiffonier:
a cupboard below one large or two smaller drawers with low shelves
above
Chinoiserie:
European decoration based on Chinese motifs and style, popular in
the 17th and 18th centuries
Chippendale
(Thomas): An 18th century English furniture
maker whose name became synonymous with fine furniture of
the period.
Chryselephantine:
a substance made from a combination of bronze and ivory used,
predominantly, by Art Deco designers
Cloisonné:
a decorative technique using metal strips to enclose coloured
enamels
Coffer:
now used for any chest with a lid on top, once used for a
travelling trunk
Collectables:
this word covers a multitude of objects but usually refers
to items that are not antique but are expected to appreciate
in value or are so interesting that people collect them
Commode:
the French term for a chest of drawers
Console
table: a side table usually attached to a wall
Creamware:
Cream coloured earthenware pottery; Wedgwood perfected the
form.
Cross-banding:
thin strips of veneer, cut across the grain, used to decorate
furniture
Daguerreotype:
A type of photograph invented by Louis Daguerre in 1839.
Distressing:
the process of inflicting minor damage (dents, scratches,
stains) to simulate age on a new piece (see fake)
Ebonised:
Stained black to imitate ivory
Ephemera:
Generally collectable items not designed to last, especially paper
collectables like postcards,
photographs, posters, etc
Escritoire:
A French writing desk
Etui:
a small case for carrying sewing items, sometimes carried on a
chatelaine (see above)
Faïence:
French tin-glazed pottery
Fake:
a piece made to deceive: it is usually a copy of an antique and
then distressed to simulate age
Flatware:
flat tableware such as plates
Flow
blue: a type of blue and white pottery on which the
blue pattern deliberately flows into the white background
Gadooning:
A decorative border consisting of a series of curves
Gesso:
plaster and size used as a base for gilt decoration usually on
pictures frames and furniture
Gilding:
gold foil applied to furniture, ceramics, picture frames, etc.
Girandole:
a mirror with candle sconces attached
Glasgow
School: the style developed by Charles
Rennie Mackintosh which influenced his generation of designers
Goss
Crested China: A type of souvenir ware manufactured
in Britain from the mid 19th century onwards.
Grandfather
clock: see longcase clock
Hammer
price: in an auction, the price for which a lot is
sold
Hard
paste: a hard shiny porcelain made from feldspar and
kaolin (china clay), this is the true porcelain that originated in
China
Inlay:
a decorative technique where small pieces of ivory, enamel or
other material is put into specially hollowed out areas on
furniture and treen
Inro:
Small flat Japanese boxes, usually beautifully decorated, made to
hand from the obi or sash
Ironstone:
A kind of strong pottery perfected and patented in the early
19th century by Miles Mason.
Japanning:
because genuine Japanese lacquer was not available in Europe in
the late 17th century so substitutes like shellac were used to
imitate the effect
Jasperware:
A fine unglazed coloured stoneware perfected by Josiah
Wedgwood
LAPADA:
London and Provincial Antique Dealers' Asssociation
Linenfold:
a style of carving, used on panelling and furniture, designed to
look like folded linen
Longcase
clock: a floor standing tall clock, often
incorrectly called a grandfather clock
Mackintosh,
Charles Rennie: Innovative
and influential architect, designer of interiors, furniture and
other objects and artist.
Maiolica:
Italian tin-glazed pottery, usually colourfully decorated
Majolica:
usually applied to English made tin-glazed pottery decorated in
the style of Italian maiolica
Marquetry:
decorative veneers used on furniture (see also parquetry)
Marriage:
a single piece made up from more than one piece of
furniture, e.g. a dresser may be made up from a low cupboard and a
separate and unrelated set of shelves - a piece like this should
be avoided
Millefiori:
often seen in paperweights,
this technique uses coloured rods fused together and then
cut up and enclosed in clear glass to produce patterns
Netsuke:
(pronounced netski) small beautifully carved Japanese objects
which act as toggles to hang things from the obi (sash)
Objets
de vertu:
sometimes known as objects of virtue, they are small precious
pretty trinkets like highly decorated gold snuff boxes, fob seals,
scent bottles (note: it is a mistake to mix up the French and
English terms, e.g. objects of vertu)
Ormolu:
gilt-bronze used to decorative effect on furniture, clocks,
etc
Over-restored:
some restoration to antiques is often necessary but it has to be
done with care so that all the patina and signs of age are not
destroyed otherwise the piece will lose value
Papier mâché:
pulped paper molded into decorative objects like trays and
boxes
Parcel
gilt: partly gilded (see gilding)
Parian
ware: fine grain porcelain resembling marble, first
produced in the mid 19th century at the Copeland factory
Parquetry:
similar to marquetry but the veneers are used to form
geometric patterns
Patina:
the surface built up over time on a piece of furniture, or other
object, from continuous polishing and use
Pediment:
a triangular gable on top of a piece of furniture in the style
found on top of a classical temple
Pembroke
table: Possibly named after the Countess of Pembroke,
these small tables are characterised by short drop-leaves at
either end
Pewter:
an alloy of tin and lead often used for mugs, plates, etc.
Pier
glass: a tall mirror designed to hang between windows,
popular in the 18th century
Pole
screen: a small screen on a pole to protect a woman's
face from the heat of a fire, this was particularly important when
make-up would melt if exposed to heat. The screens are often
embroidered.
Porcelain:
originating in China, true porcelain is made from kaolin (china
clay) although in Europe it was imitated usually using white clay
and ground glass to produce soft-paste porcelain
Provenance:
the documented history of a piece that proves its authenticity
Putti:
decorative figures of small male cherubs, much used during the
Renaissance
Regency:
a style popular from
about 1790 to the 1840s based on neo-classical designs
Renaissance:
the period after the Middle Ages, from about the 14th to 16th
century during which there was a rebirth in interest in classical
Roman design
Reproduction:
a piece sold as new but made in a bygone style (see fake)
Restoration:
the skilled repair of antiques
Sampler:
a piece of embroidery, once usually done by young girls, to
demonstrate their skill at stitching
Sconce:
a wall mounted candlestick with polished reflecting backplate
Skeleton
clock: a clock mounted under a glass dome which
displays its mechanism
Slipware:
items of pottery decorated with slip - a mixture of clay and water
Soft
paste: an imitation porcelain
Stereograph:
A Victorian invention, this was two almost identical
pictured printed side by side and, viewed through a
stereoscope, produced a 3D image.
Tambour
desk: a roll-top desk where the roll-top is made of
thin strips of wood
Tester
bed: a bed with a wooden canopy over it (a half tester
bed is one where the canopy only covers half of it)
Transfer
Printing: a technique for using a paper transfer to
impose a pattern on ceramics
Treen:
items made from wood
Trembleuse:
a saucer with a raised ring to hold a cup steady
Underglaze:
a pattern or colours applied before the glaze
Veneer:
a thin sheet of often expensive wood cut up to make decorations on
furniture, boxes, etc
Vetting:
the process, at antiques
fairs, where all goods are examined to ensure they are
genuine and correctly labeled.
Vitrine:
a French display cabinet
Wemyss:
Scottish made pottery known for its distinctive underglaze
painting
Windsor
Chair: a traditional wooden chair with shaped seat
and dowell spindle back
Copyright
© 2002 by Carol Fisher All Rights
Reserved
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