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RESTORATION
The restoration of antique furniture is a rather complicated matter because it requires quite diverse skills and knowledge.
Most of the time people think that removing the polish or sanding a piece of furniture and then giving it a few hands of shellac with a pad, they have completed a restoration. Things become even more complicated if a cabinetmakers who does not have knowledge of antique techniques or materials, fabricated missing pieces for an antique piece of furniture. Most of the time in those case we have to re-restore a piece, if it has not been so "ruined" that it has lost all of its value as an antique. Bad restorations are not exclusive to Spain. Many also come from England-cradle of great restorers-and other countries, where the price of restoration is several times higher than Spain. Due to this high cost many people settle for the "easy fix" rather than restore a piece professionaly.
First and foremost a restorer needs to be expert on antiques and their history, in order to understand their specific origin, their style, the technique and tools utilised at the time, how to use them, the various woods etc. If the restorer must veneer, what veneer should it be? What thickness, what figure or grain, where could one obtain that specific wood, is it primary or is it structural? In some occasions, in the workshop of Anticuarium we have to cut our own veneer at the same thickness of the antique. Most of our fine or exotic woods come from other countries, although sometimes that is not even sufficient; and we have to look for them at depositories of antique furniture parts.
In our workshop we use techniques and tools from the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, but also modern ones when it is permitted. We are members of various associations of Fine Cabinetmaking and Restoration and we receive a wealth of information from U.S. universities where a lot of research takes place on the subjects of cabinetmaking techniques and woods used in past centuries, studies that we also started during our 30 years of life in the U.S.
Although we restore a great variety of antique furniture for our clients, we would only purchase original pieces for Anticuarium, such that they might only require minimal restoration. This way we ascertain the originality and authenticity of what we sell and as a consequence its value as an investment. However, having studied restoration and having dismantled hundreds of pieces, it would be difficult for us to make a mistake if part or all of an antique piece furniture is not original or for a restorer to deceive us even if he/she is a master.
DETALLES DE LA RESTAURACIÓNA French porcelain mounted gilt metal clock garniture, striking movement by Ad. Mongin*, numbered 293, numbered pendulum, dial and plaques decorated with figures in a rural scene, break arch case with acanthus scrolls, 11½in (29cm) high; flanked by a pair of matching urns decorated with rural scenes, 11in (28cm) high.
*AD Mougin is listed as working in Herimoncourt in the late 1800s which is in the Montbeliard region of France one of the main clock making areas. Mougin is said to have exhibited roulants in 1900 and as his trademark contains Deux Medailles he presumably won two medals at exhibitions. According to Allix his name appears on a wrapper of Japy blanc roulants** for carriage clocks so he obviously sourced some roulants from Japy and finished them.
**Roulant is the term for an unfinished pendule de Paris movement. The movements came in two types, blancs which consisted of the plates, pillars and barrels and blanc roulants which also had the train wheels. They were supplied by a small number of factories none of which were actually in Paris and were finished by clockmakers who added the escapement and other working parts.
These represent some of our skills performed in our workshop and just a few samples of our restoration work.
C/ La Candía 35, Rucandial 39012 Santander, España - Spain
