18th Century Desk?

[D&b antiques]

This desk would date. too the late 1930's or early 1940's

[gingertomantiques]

Ok
lets make life easy
if this was 18th century $600 is a steal, its priced to lure you in. If it was right he would have added a 0. He is being very clever in his description to cover his own a**e so he would not have to refund you your money under trades description. He knows exactly what it is,
hes a dealer , its how he makes his money.
I stick to my earlier comments on value & age

[talesofthesevenseas]

Keep in mind that the piece could be in an antiques collective where a variety of sellers/dealers have items on display. Sometimes, these sellers are not professionals and it is always possible that a seller has mis-listed an item and it is possible that they do believe it is earlier than it is. I would ask the seller how they determined the age on the piece and you'll probably figure out pretty quickly if you're getting scammed or if it is a genuine error in judgement on the seller's part. I have had a few times where people were selling repros they thought were the real thing, and pieces they thought were earlier than they were. Sometimes it can be a genuine error on the part of a well-intentioned person.

[ArchitectCS]

I went back to the store and did some more sleuthing.  The screws are definitely machine made.  I'm having a hard time telling how the wood is cut but at this point I'm thinking this is a modern piece.  Based on some other conversations I've had, I'm coming to the conclusion that this is probably a 20th century (1920s-30s) reproduction of an antique piece.  There doesn't seem to be enough variation in the construction to warrant calling this a 'handmade' piece.  The insets where the inlay is missing is  remarkably regular all across the piece and the dovetails seem pretty symmetrical to me.  I've included some pictures in case there is something to give someone an 'aha' moment, but 1930s is the conclusion I'm coming to.  If that is the case, I'm not going to buy it.  While $600 is a steal for a real 18th-early 19th century desk, I'm not so sure it is for a 20th century reproduction, even if it is solid mahogany.  If it was real I could call it an investment or a family heirloom, but if it isn't, it's just a desk-one that is smaller and less functional (it's short and my legs barely fit under it) than the one I currently have.  It's also one that is missing a lot of inlay and needs to be refinished, which equals time and money I'm willing to spend on the real deal but not this. 

I'd like to thank all of you for your great advice!  This has been a great experience, I've learned a lot, and I'm excited to be here.  Thank you also for helping me avoid making a large financial mistake.

Dovetail on drawer


Underside of desk.


Underside of small drawer.


Top of drawer and missing inlay.

[regularjoe2]

Although this little desk is full of 'character' , I am happy to see that you passed on this mutt (esp. because of the condition & price) , ArchitectCS !

[hosman321]

Glad you passed her up, too. While it's a cool desk, it'd never be worth $600. Personally, with it needing minor repairs, I wouldn't have paid a penny over $200. Repairs need to be done by someone with experience. And experience costs money. At least $100 for refinishing. Then, it might be worth $350 in perfect condition. At least in my neck of the woods. Good luck finding something authentic! That sounds sarcastic, but it's meant to be sincere!

[talesofthesevenseas]

Don't worry, you've been bitten by the bug and sooner or later you're going to come across something really wonderful! (Although it was a pretty desk, if not one with the history you had hoped for!)