Evaluating your collection : the 14 points of connoisseurship / compiled by Dwight P. Lanmon.

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Lanmon, Dwight P.

Series:

Winterthur decorative arts series

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Collectors and collecting.

Collectibles.

Physical Description:

123 pages : illustrations (some color) ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Winterthur, Del. : Henry Francis du Pont Winterthur Museum ; Hanover, N.H. : Distributed by University Press of New England, [1999]

Summary:

What do Honus Wagner baseball cards, Queen Anne side chain, and 19th-century ceramic lions have in common? At first glance, very little. Yet Evaluating Your Collection sets out to discuss this wide range of things that people collect in order to guide them to a greater level of knowledge.

Is an object really worth the price? How does one know what to look for? Can one recognize fakes and invisible repairs? What about color, finish, and form? In 1961, Charles F. Montgomery, Winterthur's first director, articulated a system for educating the eye and appraising the quality of an object. His fourteen points of connoisseurship, along with additions by Winterthur curators, conservators, and educators, form an unbeatable system. Understanding them, and how they interrelate, equips readers with a basic expertise necessary to operate in the world of antiques.

Compact, reader-friendly, and illustrated in full color with objects largely from Winterthur's outstanding collection, this and future series volumes provide invaluable advice. Armed with tips from the experts, your trips to estate auctions, flea markers, or your grandmother's attic will never be the same.

Contents:

What Is Connoisseurship?

Overall Appearance

Form

Ornament

Materials

Finish

Color

Craft Techniques

Trade Practices

Function

Style

Attribution

History of Ownership

Condition

Evaluation

Final Examination.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages 113-116).

ISBN:

0912724501

OCLC:

40444004