AboutFred Taylor Expertise I will attempt to answer questions about American antique furniture, including construction details, style, period, manufacturers, care, repair and storage. I do not have any background in appliances, musical instruments, sewing machines, lighting and clocks and will not respond to quesions about those items.
Experience I ran an antique furniture restoration business for twenty years. I am a nationally syndicated columnist on the subject of antique furniture for such publications as Antique Week and New England Antiques Journal. I have produced one video on the subject of furniture identification and my book "HOW TO BE A FURNITURE DETECTIVE" is now available.I have also published articles in Antique Trader, Chicago Art Deco Society, Northeast Magazine, Victorian Decorating and Lifestyles, Professional Refinishing, Antiques and Art Around Florida and Antique Shoppe. You can visit my website at www.furnituredetective.com
Education/Credentials BSBA Finance, University of Florida, MBA Finance, University of Florida
Hello
I inherited a hutch I was told was made around 1929 and it has a gold medallion inside that says Huntley Furniture.
I would like to know the style. I was told it resembled Duncan Phyfe, but I thought that a a Co. not a style.
It has interesting edging at the top I would like to know if it is called something special. It has brass pulls and dovetail joints on the drawer. Any information will be greatly appreciated. There is limited information on Huntley Furniture. Also is there a difference between a Hutch and a China Cabinet.
Answer HARLI - B. F. Huntley was located in Winston-Salem, NC. I am curious about the 1929 date. The trademark used by B. F. Huntley in 1929 interestingly enough did not say "Huntley Furniture." It said "Huntley ->Quality -> Standard." The book "American Manufactured Furniture" by Don Fredgant, Schiffer Publishing, is a compilation of manufacturer's advertising material to retailers for the model year 1929. It shows only Colonial Revival furniture made in the Jacobean style made of walnut veneer. It does not show any Federal reproductions like your cabinet. Your cabinet is reproduction of a cabinet made in the early 1800s of the Federal period and the style is Federal.
Your cabinet appears more likely to have been made in the 1950s with its clean lines and simple hardware, not Depression era traits.
Duncan Phyfe was a Scottish cabinetmaker who came to America in the late 1700s. He evenually settled in New York opening a cabinet shop and working there until 1847. He worked in all the styles of his day, Federal, Empire and Regency but there is not a style named after him and there was never a company bearing his name.
I can't see the top detail you describe but it looks like rectangular alternating blocks of wood. If that is the case it is called "dentil" molding because of the resemblance to teeth. I know "dental" is how the reference to teeth is spelled but in furntiure it is spelled "dentil."
A hutch is an open shelf storage unit often with drawers below. A china cabinet is a closed cabinet with shelves having plate grooves and often with glass in the door but a glazed door is not a requirement. There are many blind door china cabinets.
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