What people forget is that each of us is only a temporary steward for these items, as they pass down a succession of different owners and each one of them makes changes, sandblasts, replaces bolts, eventually the irreparable damage will leave little of the original. None of these can in any way be considered restoration items, restoration doesn't involve adding on what never was, replacing perfectly good original antique bolts, screws and machine screws with new brass ones just so that they can be polished. "Decorating" or "enhancing" the box with gold/white/silver pinstriping, highlighting the logo, polishing the brass hinges etc. Replacing the original broken glass with cheap plexiglass. What is being done to these boxes? I see these boxes being sandblasted, original casting defects filled in with cheap bondo, sanded down with what must be 600 grit paper and given a super bright red ultra gloss powder paint or automotive paints, then comes the silly, totally un-authentic "Gamewell" eagle toppers and finials that look like they were made in China out of plated potmetal for flagpoles being added to the boxes as though they were original. I've remained silent far too long on the carnage I've been seeing done to these antiques under the guise of and improperly termed: "restored" (usually by people trying to sell them)Ī 100 year old antique should never look like it is a cheap reproduction that just shipped over from China, and that is how most of the "restored" antique boxes look to me. I haven't found much in the way of new posts on this topic here so I thought I would post this and also mention the folder I added to my web site that specifically addresses the correct, historically sensitive restorations of these antiques- pre 1930 era.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |