Home Page Answer Contd.
So you want to be a Dealer

To begin with the first and most important thing to remember is that the dealing part is primary; the antique part comes second. You must learn the art of dealing, and it is essential to understand how the trade works, who buys what and from where, who is the end purchaser, what channels do pieces go through to reach that end and what is the chain of events from beginning to end. Knowledge of the type of antique you choose to deal in will come quickly and naturally once you start to trade, but before then several months must be spent observing. That means no income, and you should not strive to earn one.

Apart from living expenses you will need to be able to, and afford to, drive a car. There is no need for a spacious estate version yet, so any economic run-around will do. This is to enable you to view and attend auction sales and visit shops throughout the provinces as well as London. These will range from top-of-the-range house sales and high-end dealerships to local market salerooms, small shops and antique centres.

Visit two or three to begin with and pick on perhaps three types of antiques that appeal to you more than anything else. Note those to which your eyes naturally go and rest upon and which you feel have a natural affinity with. It is much easier to learn about something you like. Having established that set three different routes covering particular areas of the country, say the West Country, Wales and the Midlands or the South East, Essex and Lincolnshire. Do not stretch too far afield from where you live to start with; the main object at this time is to see and absorb as much as possible to get your \'eye\' in. Then do the same in London. For example go to Kensington Church Street, Westbourne Grove and The Fulham Road, or St. James\'s, Mayfair and the Pimlico Road. Plan your routes and timing with care; there is nothing more frustrating than visiting an area where there are a few shops and a saleroom to find the saleroom is closed or between sales and there is nothing to view, when the following week there will be.

Do not at this stage venture into boot fairs or massive events like Newark. It will only be confusing and distracting, there will be plenty of time for that sort of enterprise later.

So, for the Next Month plan as follows:- Week One (1) Armed with a map of the antique shops in your State or Country plan a route that will not stretch you too far. (2) Establish the whereabouts of auctions and situations of shops. (3) Check for accommodation according to your pocket. (4) Visit each shop and auction and establish what type of antiques take your eye and interest. Take your time when viewing. (5) Note which shops seem to specialise in a particular merchandise. Week Two repeat Week One with a different route. Week Three repeat Week One precisely. Week Four repeat Week Two precisely. You will quickly recognise items that have moved from the first time you saw them. Note these and their price tags and create a list for reference. You will already have witnessed a profit being made. In six month\'s time it could be yours. Watch this space next month.


Fakes and Forgeries.

Since people first collected, people have copied and so the minefield is old as well as wide. Alterations for utility purposes as well as financial gain also complicate the issue and so to deal with the problem rationally it is best to gain some understanding of the environment when the original would have been made. There are certain areas more prone to reproduction than others; ancient Greek and Roman remains, early English silverware and highly carved Chippendale furniture are good examples. On silver the transposition of hallmarks is an ever-present danger, being done either to give age and authenticity and thus value to an otherwise spurious item, or an attempt by the silversmith to avoid the duty or tax imposed upon such wares between 1784 and 1891. Eitherway it is most likely that the marks will be in a position that would not have been compatable with the supposed age of the piece or they will be struck in a precise manner not available to a silversmith from an earlier period. Experience gained by looking carefully at a range of pieces from three or four different periods from say the first half of the 17th century, the first half of the 18th century, the last quarter of the eighteenth century and the early 20th century will soon give you an eye accustomed to seeing how the marks are arranged and placed. Any positioning out of the ordinary does not mean instant condemnation but should give justification for further investigation, and serious doubt can be answered by The Antique Plate Committee at Goldsmiths\' Hall. future articles in trhis space will deal with specific instances.



Antiques Article Spring 2010. George Baxter.

A recent article by Andrew Roberts in a Sunday supplement cautioned the dangers of abandoning teaching proper history in the proper manner, for it is by such means that we may learn from a situation and have an inkling of what may occur next. I like to agree. For many years I have advocated that an all-round look at society throughout the ages is the easiest and most enjoyable way to understand something about antiques, and recent events have added another dimension to the subject, that of economics. In particular the comparison of a meteoric rise and then collapse of a category in the past to one in the present day, especially in the ?collectable? field. Surely we can learn from and even turn to our advantage studying such vagaries in taste and fashion. Take for example the work of George Baxter, 1804 ?1867, the printer, whose pre-eminence faded during his lifetime but saw a frenzied revival during the 1920?s only to fade again during the late 20th century. George Baxter was the son of a publisher and bookseller and having served his apprenticeship to a wood engraver set himself the task of revolutionising printing techniques in colour. The process incorporated the use of coloured oil inks, an initial metal keyplate and up to twenty further metal or wood blocks to apply each individual colour. Thus Baxter is acknowledged as the ?inventor? of this colour printing method for which he received deserved acclaim, but only for a while. He was granted a patent in 1835 and by 1845 had exhibited at The Royal Academy. He had been commissioned to make coloured prints of the Queen?s Coronation and the Opening of Parliament and in 1851 took a stand at The Great Exhibition where he received an award. He made a set of prints showing Paxton?s masterful Crystal Palace and continued to diversify his work into prints that could be applied to virtually any surface and depict any subject. In the 1920?s several large books on the man, his life and works were produced at great cost for a large and enthusiastic band of devotees. A shame that these came sixty or so years after Baxter?s wretched demise for in 1860 he was declared bankrupt and in 1866 was hit by a carriage and died in penury and no doubt in pain a year later.
One major problem was that his processes were so laborious that by the time his wonderful pictures of great occasions were ready for marketing they were long since over and yesterday?s news. But for us his legacy is extraordinary. Beautifully crafted scenes of Victorian life, great masterpieces of art, national heroes, theatrical heroines, historic moments and events from popular fiction. All to be found on a vast range of items, from paper pictures, wooden caskets and boxes, porcelain panels and, my own favourite, ceramic pot lids. In the mid-1950?s large collections were formed of these covers for round shallow jars which were made to contain everything from meat paste to tooth paste and bear?s grease. After a small number of companies found a way around Baxter?s printing patent, coupled with developments in the cheap mass production of the jars, pot lids became as available and collectable in their time as the prizes in a Corn Flake Packet are today, with the difference that they were durable. They could be framed and hung on the wall or displayed in cabinets. While many cheaper ones were made to carry the brand name of the contents or the retailer, the most desirable continued to be those bearing the ?Baxter? type prints. But in books on antiques produced during the late 20th and early 21st century they get, along with George Baxter, barely a mention. However, when there is a finite supply there will always be a steady and often increasing demand for the genuine article. There are over 4000 lid patterns recorded and over 300 Baxter prints registered, and there is a Pot Lid Circle which you can join. There is no doubt that to judge from economic patterns of the past we can look at these two categories and be sure that they will return once more to wider acclaim??by the time this is published they may be doing so already. Take note.