How to Identify Real Antique Furniture
Four things to check before you buy: joinery, hardware, wear, and marks.
1. Joinery
Turn the piece over or open a drawer. Hand-cut dovetail joints are slightly uneven, with spacing that varies from one joint to the next. Machine-cut dovetails, common in 20th-century reproductions, are perfectly uniform and evenly spaced.
2. Hardware
Original screws on genuinely old pieces are often hand-forged, with off-center slots and inconsistent threading. A piece described as pre-1900 but held together with uniform Phillips-head screws is worth a second look — Phillips screws weren't in common use until the 1930s.
3. Wear patterns
Real wear is uneven and located where hands and feet actually touch: drawer runners, chair arms, the inside of doors. Uniformly "distressed" finishes, or wear in places that don't make sense for how the piece would be used, usually point to artificial aging.
4. Maker's marks & labels
Stamps, paper labels, or brands on the underside or inside a drawer can help date and attribute a piece. Not every genuine antique is marked, but a mark that doesn't match the claimed era is a clear red flag.
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Furniture Identification FAQ
What's the fastest way to tell if furniture is a real antique?
Check the joinery first. Hand-cut dovetails are uneven and vary in spacing, while machine-cut dovetails from later reproductions are perfectly uniform.
Do machine screws mean furniture isn't antique?
Not necessarily on their own, but uniform Phillips-head screws throughout a piece that's claimed to predate the 20th century is a red flag worth asking the dealer about.