Monday, August 16, 1999
Research important in buying antiques
Show brings dealers, shoppers together
BY SUSAN VELA
The Cincinnati Enquirer
BURLINGTON — Joe and Dee McGowan walked away from one of the region's largest antique shows Sunday with a $250 music cabinet from the 1930s.
The Anderson Township couple didn't mind the price at the Burlington Antique Show because the piece seemed to be in good shape, with all the obvious markings of a true antique.
With pride, they pointed out that the cabinet was nailed together and was without the tell-tale marks of a staple gun. Its shelves were intact, the mirror had been resilvered, and there was no stainless steel in sight.
But the couple, who consider themselves new antiquers, already have learned the meaning of “caveat emptor” — let the buyer beware.
Some of the 300-plus dealers who gathered Sunday at the Boone County Fairgrounds offered some simple advice for those worried about buying reproductions or something that hails from a different decade than they intended.
They also mentioned their own mistakes, noting that their bumbles, from inexpensive to expensive, were an important step in their learning curves.
Philip Myers of Lazy Days Antiques in Winchester, Ky., remembers shelling out $300 for what he thought was an authentic Civil War sword.
He soon learned that he could have paid $75 for the same piece at any Civil War re-enactment site. The giveaway was the “screw or bolt” used to attach the handle to the sword. That type of hardware did not arrive until after the turn of the century, he said.
“It's all part of the learning process,” he said. “When you make a mistake like that, you don't forget.”
Antique dealers say research is the key.
The Burlington Antiques Show welcomes dealers and shoppers from all over the Tristate area once a month, between April and October. The last two shows of the 1999 season will be Sept. 19 and Oct. 17.
Hours: 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Boone County Fairgrounds. Admission: $3; free to children under 12.
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