Welcome to the first Nantucket Antiques Depot Blog on antiques and antiquing. We have been selling antiques for over twenty years in a shop overlooking Nantucket Harbor. we carry 17th, 18th and 19th Century furniture, art and decorative accessories, with an emphasis on Marine Antiques, Decoys and the China Trade. Our taste and interests reflect New England history and culture, and at the same time are quite wide and eclectic. There truly is something for everyone at the Antiques Depot.
We’ve been a bit slow in starting the blog (sorry about that!), but we’ve been on the run updating our website, social media (yes, we are actually on Facebook and Twitter), and lining up our advertising for the year. Spring is always a hectic time of year on Nantucket. We have scrubbed and shined the shop from stem to stern, and have been full out setting up a fresh display with all the great new finds we lucked upon over the winter. It might seem easy, but we have to research, identify and authenticate, determine a fair value and properly present each and every piece before it goes out on display. We want our clients to be confident, so we are adamant about being confident ourselves about every piece before we endorse it with our name.
Spring is also usually the busiest time of year for personal property appraisals. It must have something to do with the Ides of March… the old tax time must remind people to finally get around to donating that object to their favorite museum, or upgrading their insurance, or settling that inheritance. This year has been even crazier because I’ve had to run off island a lot. There has been an increasing plea for appraisals from clients on the mainland. I have also been attending courses at RISD in order to keep up to date with the latest standards and legal requirements for appraisals. The American Society of Appraisers insists all its members continue their education to always stay up to snuff. Wouldn’t you want Your appraiser to be at the top of his game?
We have also been very busy teaching a course on The World of Antiques and Antiquing for the Nantucket Community Schools Adult Education program. We started with an introduction to gaining a perspective on antiques versus vintage, periods and styles, market levels, and what are some of the factors that affect value. We followed up with a two week hair-raising chase through Buyer Beware: Auctions, eBay and More! Not at all for the faint of heart. Tonight we’ll calm things down a bit with Changing Times and Temperaments: The Antiques Market Today and Hints of the Future. Its been a lot more time consuming that we originally thought, but the course has been fun and very rewarding (I hope my students agree).
In the blogs ahead we’ll explore a variety of antiques and related topics. We’ll look at the history behind many fascinating objects and try to get a handle on their connoisseurship. We’ll warn you of some of the perils and pitfalls of the antiques business, as well as sharing some of the delights. We will observe and comment on noteworthy events throughout the world of antiques. We’ll on occasion also discuss some important appraisal concerns. For the most part we will be just ruminating and reminiscing about the world of antiques, as we see it from here on the waterfront in Nantucket.