Glossary

Aesthetic Movement: The aesthetic movement was a late 19th century trend that sought to reform and simplify household decoration.

Ambrotype: A photographic image printed on glass is known as an ambrotype.

American Renaissance Revival 1865-1885: A style of furniture that looks back to the Renaissance and to the classical styles of the Greeks, Romans and Egyptians. American Renaissance Revival artists were not afraid of mixing styles including Rococo or Gothic and the furniture tended to be large, mimicking Renaissance architectural forms. In fact, Renaissance Revival beds are often so large they require a step to get into. The American Renaissance Revival eventually gave way to the simpler works of the Arts and Crafts movement.

Antique: Traditionally, antiques were generally objects pre-dating the mass production of objects in the 1830’s. Today, we define an antique as any object over 100 years old.
~ also see collectible

Arcanist: Person knowing or claiming to know a secret, especially the secret of porcelain-making.

Armoire: A large French cupboard or wardrobe is known as an armoire. This piece of furniture was originally used to store armor.

Art Deco 1920-1940: Almost impossible to define, Art Deco is angular and sometimes curved; industrial, yet often Egyptian; genteel looking yet made for the masses. Confused? With its roots at the turn of the 20th century, but taking its name from the 1925 Paris Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et Industriels Modernes, Art Deco was a modernist, anti-historical movement inspired both by the angles in the hard-edged machines rapidly invading the world (earlier in the movement) and the streamlined and aerodynamic elements of modern aircraft (1930’s). Art deco artists mass produced their items, but didn’t forsake quality for quantity.

Art Nouveau 1890-1914: The three words which might sum up Art Nouveau are flamboyant, erotic and organic. Art Nouveau, or new art, flourished at the turn of the 20th century and drew its inspiration from nature. The name Art Nouveau came from a design shop, La Maison de l’Art Nouveau, opened by German entrepreneur Siegfried (Samuel) Bing in Paris in 1895. The artists whose work was sold at the store included Emile Gallé, Louis Comfort Tiffany, René Lalique and furniture makers Eugene Gaillard and Georges DeFeure, all of whom are now considered signature artists for the Art Nouveau movement. The movement’s signature motifs included the sinuous whiplash or S-curve and the female naked body often portrayed as nymphs or mermaids.

Arts and Crafts: Inspired by the writings of John Ruskin and William Morris, the arts and crafts movement emulated earlier ideals of craftsmanship, turning away from the use of machines, as a direct reaction to industrialization in the 19th century.

Aspergillum: Brush or rod for sprinkling holy water.

Automata: Any toy or decorative item that has movable parts which are usually powered by a clockwork mechanism is known as an automaton.

Baroque: This highly ornate and decorative style draws its inspiration from the architecture of 17th century Italy.

Bas Relief (or Low Relief): Sculpture or architecture where figures project only slightly from the background is known as bas relief.

Bauhaus: Bauhaus is the name of an influential art school established by Walter Gropius in Germany in 1919. The name is now synonymous with the modernist design style which grew from it.

Bakelite: Invented in 1907 by Belgian born scientist L.H. Backeland, bakelite is one of the first plastics ever made. During the 1930's and 40's, bakelite was used to make everything from toasters and jewelry because it was inexpensive, fire resistant and an excellent insulator against heat and electricity. Jewelry made of bakelite during the 1930's and 40's is highly collectible now.

Beaux Arts: An eclectic and academic style of design popular in the late 19th and early 20th century, which originated at the French Ecole des Beaux-Arts.

Blank: A completely undecorated piece of pottery or porcelain is known as a blank.

Bonbonnires: Small, usually elaborately shaped boxes that were made of gold, silver, porcelain or enamelled ware and were used to hold sweetmeats (sweet delicacies, such as candy or crystallized fruits).

Bone China: Bone china is made from a combination of 25% china stone, 25% china clay and 50% calcined cattle bones. Bone china has been produced in since the early 19th century.

Britannia Standard: The first silver mark, the Leopard's head, indicates that the item is made of sterling silver (meaning silver of 92.5% purity). The degree of purity was raised from 92.5 to 95.8 in 1697 and the mark was changed to the Britannia Standard. Sterling was introduced in 1720 and was used as an alternative for Britannia and the two have been used ever since.

Cabriole: A signature design element of the Queen Anne style of furniture, the cabriole (Italian for 'goat's leap') predates both 18th century England and Italy. The cabriole is supple and sinuous, rather than rigid and straight, typifying 'Georgian grace.' The cabriole likely borrowed its shape from the curved legs often found on low K'ang tables. The leg was updated by cabinet makers with the now familiar ball and claw foot (often referred to as the eagle's foot or crow foot. Although the legs took longer to make they added extra support to chairs, allowing furniture makers to eliminate the stretches that traditionally connected one leg to the next.

Carat: Carat is a measurement used for either precious stones (equal to 200 milligrams) or pure gold (on a scale of 1-24; 12 carats equals 50% pure gold).

Cartouche: Originally used to describe the oval found around a Pharaoh's name in Egyptian hieroglyphics, we now understand a cartouche to mean one of the key features found on antique maps. Cartouche is the design that surrounds the map's title, dedication or mileage scale and while some are purely decorative, others contain information or pictures relevant to the map. Map making has evolved over the past 500 hundred years and so too has the cartouche, often becoming miniature works of art. In the 18th century, the Germans took the art of cartouche to its highest peak using people, flowers and fauna to decorate the maps.

Catalogue Raisonne: A list of all the known works of any painter is known as his catalogue raisonne.

China: Although it wasn't made in Europe until the 18th century, china was developed over 100 years ago in, not surprisingly, China. Once synonymous with porcelain, China is made when kaolin is mixed with petuntse, two forms of decomposed granite which fuse together in a very hot kiln to produce translucent clayware. If the item is opaque it is known as pottery. Bone china was developed by the English in the mid 18th century. They added bone ash from animals to the traditional china ingredients making the desired item harder and more creamy looking than traditional china.

Chinoiserie: This describes a Chinese style decoration or object made in the Chinese style in the 17th and 18th centuries.

Chippendale: The term Chippendale connotes very fine furniture. The style, developed by Thomas Chippendale in London in the mid 1700's mixed Rococo with Gothic and Chinese and quickly displaced the more angular Queen Anne style, which was popular at that time. In 1754, Chippendale published a book called Director, which was one of the earliest design books and which helped bring Chippendale to prominence.

Cloisonne: This decorative technique is a pattern that is outlined by metal wire on a gold, brass or copper setting and each section is filled in with copper enamel.

Collectible: The word collectible became popular in the 1930's when the definition of an antique became more narrowly defined as an object more than 100 years old. Collectibles are generally divided into three categories. Artistic and historical items like a Tiffany lamp would be considered collectibles, as would popular items like Beanie babies and Pokemon cards. Some collectibles gain value because of their association. An example of this would be a Marilyn Monroe dress. Collectibles can be tricky, though, because it is difficult to know if future generations will be as enchanted with the items we find collectible.
~ see antique

Commode: A commode is a low chest of drawers made from the mid 17th century. The term, which is French, is also used to describe a bedroom cupboard that incorporates a chamber pot or washbasin.

Composition: Over the centuries, doll makers have used a variety of materials to construct dolls including gold, wax, cornhusks, wood, alabaster, glazed stoneware, terra cotta, leather and rags. They've also used something called composition, which is an unlikely mixture of wood pulp and paste which is boiled and formed into rags. This malleable material became the plastic of its day and was used to replace the more expensive and fragile bisque dolls from about 1850 to the First World War. Between 1920 and 1950 most American dolls were composition and many highly collectible examples (including Shirley Temple) still exist.

Crackle: The fine cracks on the surface of glazed pottery, china or glassware is known as crackle. The effect is caused by differing expansion and contraction rates of the material.

Crystal: The term crystal refers to glass that contains lead, an addition to the recipe for glass discovered in the 17th century. Using lead oxide rather than the more traditional soda produced glass that was heavier and more lustrous; it was also heavier, contained less bubbles and was ideal for cutting. Lead is also the ingredient that gives glass it's 'ping' - a sound not heard in everyday glassware.

Daguerreotype: Daguerreotype was the first commercially successful photography process. Before Daguerreotype, people who wanted their images captured had to hire a painter, a miniaturist or someone who cut silhouettes. In the 1850's, a daguerreotype cost just .50 cents, a sum that the masses could afford. Invented by Frenchman J.M. Daguerre, the process came to America from Paris with Samuel B. Morse in 1840. The process, made on a copper plate coated with polished silver, was wildly popular from the 1840's through the 1850's.

Davenport: A small writing desk with many drawers and a hinged writing surface, the davenport was popular in the late 18th and throughout the 19th centuries.

Delftware (or Delft): Popular 17th and 18th century tin glazed earthenware which was often decorated in cobalt blue.

Drop leaf: A table with hinged flaps that can be raised is known as a drop leaf table.

Dust Jacket: The paper cover used to protect the binding of a book from wear and tear. Also known as the 'book jacket,' it is the only removable part of a book. The earliest recorded dust jackets are from 1832, although these rare examples are extremely difficult to find. Originally intended to be thrown away before the book was read, dust jackets have regained their prominence since about 1920 when people became interested in book collecting and books with dust jackets in good condition often increase the value of the volume ten fold.

Enameling: Enameling is a method of decorating metal objects with one or more layers of translucent enamels made from powdered glass to which metallic oxide pigments are added to give colour.

Ephemera: From the Greek word ephemeros, which means 'lasting but a day,' ephemera refers to anything transitory or short lived; items produced, regardless of the century, that were not meant to last are considered ephemera. Items included in the catch all category ephemera include 19th century valentines, political posters and buttons, and invitations to film premiers and gala openings. The dollar values of ephemera can vary depending on the item (a match book might sell for as little as a dollar; a famous poster, a great deal more), but all the experts agree that when it comes to ephemera, condition is everything.

Etruria: The name Josiah Wedgwood gave to the factory (and village that grew up round it) he opened in 1769. He chose this name because he wished to revive the pottery-making art of the Etruscans.

Expressionism: Expressionism is a style of art in which the intention is not to reproduce a subject accurately, but instead to portray it in such a way as to express the inner state of the artist. The movement is associated with Germany in particular and includes the work of artists such as Wassily Kandinsky, Franz Marc and Amadeo Modigliani.

Famille Rose: This is a predominantly rose hued enamel decoration found on 18th and 19th century Oriental export porcelain.

Federal Furniture: Second only to Chippendale in terms of value, Federal furniture was produced in the United States between 1786 and 1810. Federal era furniture borrowed features from the Greek and Roman styles and included images such as eagles and urns. Flat veneers and inlayed wood were also typical of the style a direct contrast from the elaborately carved wood found on Chippendale pieces. Federal furniture was the first American produced furniture and for Americans signifies the country's break from England.

Filigree: A design made out of thin, twisted wire, filigree is often seen in broaches and earrings and is usually made of silver or gold (although very expensive filigree is made from platinum). An art form usually associated with the Mediterranean, filigree reached its peak during the Edwardian period, or the early 1900s. Today, most filigree is stamped, but the Italian and Chinese continue to make it by hand.

Finial: A finial is the finishing touch on a piece of furniture and almost always consists of an urn with a flame or a spike coming out of it. Finials are decorative and usually found on the top of furniture and it is often the piece of furniture that gets broken or lost.

First Edition: A first edition is the first press run of a book and whether a book is a first or second edition makes a great deal of difference to the value of a book. First editions often have typos or misprints, which are often considered charming by collectors.

Foxing: Foxing describes the brown spots that gradually form on paper, a condition that can diminish the value of the book. Foxing is often the result of high humidity or temperature extremes, but can also be caused by certain ingredients found in ink and metals, like copper and iron, left over from pulp processing in the 18th and 19th centuries. Foxing is the most common default found in rare books and although it is more commonly found in older books, it is found in modern books, too.

Fresco: A fresco is a painting done in watercolor on a ceiling or wall while the new plaster is still wet.

Friggers: Improbable and even fantastic objects made of glass -tobacco pipes, walking sticks, bells, ships, riding crops, bellows (flasks), rolling pins-much else. Made at Nailsea particularly, and at Bristol, and to a lesser extent at other glassmaking centres.

Frontispiece: Not to be mistaken with the title page, the frontispiece of a book is actually the illustration page found opposite to the title page usually featuring an engraving or photograph.

Gadroon: This decorative, lobed ornamental border is most often found on furniture or metal work.

Georgian Style: An architectural and decorative style dominant during the reign of the three English George's from 1714 to 1820.The Georgian sensibility followed classical Greek and Roman principals and the furniture of the period was simple and elegant uncluttered and sophisticated. Wedgewood china is Georgian as is furniture designed by Thomas Chippendale and George Hepplewhite.

Gilding: This is a technique often done to glass, ceramics, furniture or picture frames. The item is decorated with gold leaf, gold dust or gold paint.

Glaze: Not to be mistaken with a pot's decoration, its glaze seals the clay and waterproofs the object. Glaze also brings a shiny finish to a piece of pottery, much in the same way that a layer of varnish gives depth to a painting. An item without glaze is called bisque. Glazes need not be utilitarian; often they are an important part of the pottery's decoration. Glazes can be clear, coloured or opaque and a glaze's chemistry can often influence the finished product.

Godet: Term for a drinking cup or jug (obsolete).

Gothic Revival: Characterized by slender, soaring lines, flying buttresses, pointed arches and rib vaults, the gothic revival period of the 18th and 19th century drew its inspiration from the medieval style that flourished between the 11th and 15th centuries.
Hallmark: A hallmark is the silversmith's or goldsmith's signature. The English have carefully marked their silver and gold since 1300 and their system of hallmarking is considered the best in the world. Smiths must take their creations to independent inspectors who, upon determining the piece's authenticity, punch it with five marks: the standard hallmark verifying the metals' purity, the maker's name or symbol, the date, town and Sovereign's Head mark which indicates the owner has paid the required taxes.

Horology: Horology is the study of how we reckon time. While that seems pretty easy today, telling time wasn't so easy a few hundred years ago when it would have been considered a huge scientific undertaking. Horology is the term often applied to the craft of making timepieces. The first clock was built in Milan, Italy in 1335; a clock was added to Salisbury Cathedral in England in 1386. While these clocks weren't 100% accurate, they forever changed the way we measured time.

Impressed Mark: A mark used to impress the manufacturers design or symbol onto soft clay before it is fired.

Impressionism: The Impressionist style of painting is chiefly characterized by concentrating on the general impression produced by a scene or object and using unmixed primary colors and small strokes to simulate actual reflected light. A major movement, first in painting and later in music, impressionism developed mainly in France during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The most conspicuous characteristic of Impressionism was an attempt to accurately and objectively record visual reality in terms of the transient effects of light and colour. Among the principle Impressionist painters were Claude Monet, Pierre August Renoir and Camille Pissarro.

Inlay: The art of putting something decorative into something solid, inlay could potentially be made of a variety of materials including glass, wax, mother of pearl, metal, ivory, wood veneer and hot sulfur. The art of inlay dates back to the pharaohs, although it continues to go in and out of fashion. It was particularly popular during the Art Deco period.

Jasper Ware: Invented by Josiah Wedgewood, Jaspar Ware is a type of fine stoneware used as a base for the raised white classical figures associated with Wedgewood Pottery.

Kutani: Ceramic items, including the widely exported eggshell teawares, made in the Kutani region of Japan from the 17th until the 20th century.

Longcase Clock: Also known as a grandfather clock, a long case clock is a tall, narrow clock with a base that sits on the floor.

Loupe: A small magnifying lens used by jewelers and watchmakers used for closer examination.

Ming porcelain: Well known porcelain produced in China during the dynasty that ruled from 1368-1644.

Neo Classical: A revival style developed in the late 18th and early 19th centuries, neo classical was inspired by the art and architecture of Ancient Greece and Rome and was characterized by order, symmetry and simplicity.

Objects of virtu: This term is usually used to describe small luxury items like seals, snuffboxes and needle cases which have been made of silver, gold, porcelain and enamel. These 'precious objects' are often decorated with gilding or precious gems.

Palladian: This style of architecture inspired by the 16th century Italian Andrea Palladio (1508-1580) greatly influenced the work of 18th century furniture designer William Kent. Palladio remains the most influential architect in the history of architecture. His work was informed by three things: dramatic exterior motifs, economical materials and internal harmony and balance.

Patina: Patina is a thin layer of colour, corrosion or texture which develops naturally on any hard surface over an extended period of time. Patina is generally the result of natural or artificial oxidization with colours ranging from brown to green to copper and bronze.

Pembroke Table: A Pembroke is a small table with two drop leaves and one or more drawers beneath the centre section. The design of the table is said to be attributed to the Countess of Pembroke, who ordered the design in the 18th century.

Pier table: A pier table was designed to stand between the 'pier' or the wall between two windows.

Porcelain: A hard, translucent white ceramic made from china clay (kaolin) and chinastone (petuntse) and, in England, bone ash that is fired at high temperature.

Provenance: Provenance is the record of all previous ownership of an antique object.

Regency: Regency describes the style prevalent between 1800 and 1830 in England. It was named after the Prince Regent, later George IV.

Renaissance: The period from the late 14th until the early 14th century, the renaissance period of art and literature revived the ideals of Classicism.

Repeater: When the user pulls a cord, presses a button or depresses a lever on a clock or watch, making the item repeat the strike for the last hour or quarter hour, this is known as a repeater. Clocks or watches that repeat the last five minutes are very rare.

Rococo: Developed from the Baroque, Rococo originated in France in 1720. It is characterized by profuse or elaborate designs involving scrolls and curves which imitate swirls, shells and leaves. Rococo gradually gave way to the Neo Classical period in the 1760's.

Satsuma ware: This cream coloured earthenware which has been covered with a yellowish glaze and has been densely painted and richly gilded is named after the Japanese port of Satsuma, although it was made in various parts of Japan.

Scrimshaw: Scrimshaw is traditional sailor's art where intricate designs are carved on whalebone or ivory.

Scripophily: Collecting old and canceled stocks and bonds is known as scripophily. This hobby gained in popularity in the mid 1970's and to date there are thousands of scripophilists all over the world. Scrip represents an ownership right and philos means to love. To collectors, old stocks and bonds are both beautiful and valuable.

Spandrels: The triangular corner space between an arch or circle and a rectangle is known as a spandrel. On a clock, a spandrel is the ornamental corner between the chapter ring and the dial plate.

Yu (Chinese): Ancient ritual wine container made of bronze, cylndrical, with looped handle and a convex cover.

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