Dating Furniture By Joints

The style of dovetailing used by the maker can provide clues as to the age of the piece, as well as reveal whether it was made in the United States, Canada or Europe.

Dating furniture by joints. The type of dovetailed joint, especially in drawers, reveals much about furniture construction and dating. Until the late 1600s handmade dowels or pegs held the mortise-and-tenon joints together and were slightly raised above the joints Upper drawers which were protected by the bottom drawer(s), were exposed to less air and therefore less smoke, grease, etc,.

Rabbet antique furniture joints are used in casework furniture like chests or in some drawers to join the sides to the front and/or back. Sill and Floor Joints 20 IV. Check the construction of the joints.

The Federal period (Hepplewhite) dressing table of my wife's dreams. Some examples of dovetail joinery are found in furniture dating back to ancient Egypt and Chinese Emperors. R oof Joinery Excluding Trusses 34 VI.

While the specific provenance of the joint is unknown, I'm willing to bet the inventor wasn't a virgin. Most quality pieces of antique furniture will have a dovetail joint in the drawer construction as it was a very early form of construction, but was so successful, it was used for many 100s of years. Wall and Brace Joints 28 V.

Different Types Of Dovetail Joints . By Antique Trader Staff. The dovetail joinery technique goes all the way back to earliest days of mankind.

Determining the age of antique furniture is the first step in establishing a proper valuation, as well as verifying that the piece is indeed an authentic furnishing from the era in question. What are the different types of dovetail joints? INDEX TO JOINTS AND USEFUL TERMS TABLE OF CONTENTS I.