Monthly Archives: June 2015

Banging Tunes

Posted on 26th June 2015 by Jack Plane

Whilst working on the book today (and you thought I’ve just been wasting time training horses and spraying weeds), I have been listening to Stjepan Hauser and Luka Sulic (2CELLOS). A little levity to start the weekend… .. … and … Continue reading →

Posted in Distractions | Tagged | 16 Comments

Indian Varnish

Posted on 21st June 2015 by Jack Plane

In the seventeenth-century, highly fashionable imported goods from the East (such as printed fabrics and lacquered furniture) were often collectively referred to as ‘Indian’, no matter whether they originated in China, India, Japan, Korea etc. ‘Indian’ or ‘India’ varnish is … Continue reading →

Posted in colouring and polishing | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Maintaining the Mahogany

Posted on 15th June 2015 by Jack Plane

Where footmen are kept, the charge of rubbing mahogany furniture devolves on them, otherwise it becomes the care of the housemaid. The chairs and tables should be rubbed well every day; and on the mahogany tables a little cold drawn … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiques, colouring and polishing | Tagged , , , | 7 Comments

HMS Nutmeg

Posted on 14th June 2015 by Jack Plane

I recently mentioned spices in Picture This L; Art Gallery of South Australia is currently running an exhibition Treasure Ships: Art in the Age of Spices until the 30th of August. The exhibition presents the complex artistic and cultural interactions … Continue reading →

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Bendor on Brown Furniture

Posted on 14th June 2015 by Jack Plane

Old Masters art historian, Bendor Grosvenor (familiar to many as the researcher in the BBC1 series Fake or Fortune?), talks about a possible comeback of brown furniture in his latest podcast for the Financial Times. Jack Plane

Posted in Antiques | Tagged | 2 Comments

Picture this LIV

Posted on 3rd June 2015 by Jack Plane

In the earlier post, Picture This XXXV, I illustrated a mid-eighteenth-century mahogany bureau whose top drawer partially concealed the loper pockets. An earlier bureau (fig. 1) with not dissimilar extended drawer fronts sold at Christie’s The Connoisseur’s Eye sale yesterday, … Continue reading →

Posted in Antiques, Case Furniture, Drawers, Picture This | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments