I Must Tell You This!
by
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As the man said "nostalgia isn't what it used to be" and that can be said of antiques and fine art which can be very much a cyclical business. It is also a business where the lower end of the market can attract a certain amount of cynicism. "I buy junk , but sell antiques" was the catchphrase of one disillusioned dealer. If intending to invest in antiques for long term financial appreciation or just the pure pleasure of daily seeing something exquisite and beautiful in your home, always buy quality, quality, quality. It cannot be emphasized enough. Purchase the best example of its genre that you can afford, but never overlook the maxim Caveat Emptor, "Buyer Beware." If in doubt about the provenance of a piece, or whether there is tell-tale restoration, leave well alone. Unfortunately, skullduggery spawned by greed still exists, no better illustrated than by "A Tale of Two Mirrors." Here, the restorer, Ted Burrows,..."a portly genial man...with huge rough hands showing various stages of shading as if someone had attempted to restore these for him" displayed avaricious guile and cunning such that he nearly fooled the art world, but hadn't counted on the expertise of Tom Fry. Like wine there can be a certain mystique about the fine art world. So how does the enthusiastic amateur guard against the unscrupulous vendor? Well, always buy from reputable sources. Ask around. Ask questions. Never be afraid to query attribution. Buy or simply attend at professional auctions and watch the proceedings. You'll soon learn to spot the genuine from the disingenuous. Read reference books and auction catalogues. The attribution of lots is rarely incorrect. Be wary of buying from Internet sites. There is no substitute for handling a piece or seeing it "in the flesh". Getting "hooked" can become the genesis of a lifetime mission to assemble a collection, whether it be rare stamps or just old post-cards. You are always in danger of become a bore at house parties describing your passion to anyone prepared to listen. It can be an eternal fascination to muse over some rare piece and wonder to whom it belonged. Who drank from this two hundred years old silver goblet? Who sat in that three hundred years old Queen Anne chair? Perhaps the owner met an untimely death at the hands of the executioner? There it is. I hope everyone who reads this book finds it pleasurable and perhaps learns something new; knowledge to entertain people with if you ever get stuck in a lift. To quote Sir Michael Caine "Not a lot of people know that".
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About the Book
This book of eight stories describing the fascinating world of antiques and fine art is the author's first literary offering, and has been some five years in the creation. Although he describes it as a fictional work, that is not strictly accurate because some of the events are in fact completely true. Some, however, only contain a grain of truth whilst the remainder are pure fiction, the products of a fertile imagination...but could be true; some dealers and collectors will almost certainly have similar reminiscences. The completely and partially true stories have been garnered over the years from dealer and collector friends and acquaintances, often during lulls in auction proceedings to ease the boredom of mediocre lots, but with suitable and appropriate embellishment where considered necessary. If the reader has a rye or droll sense of humour he or she should find some of the episodes amusing, and on a more serious note, hopefully interesting and even educational. Enjoy!
About the Author
Aged 68, and now semi-retired, he lives in Herne Bay, a seaside town of faded Regency and Victorian grandeur on the north Kent coast, with his wife Susan, two adult children and four grand-children. His former "proper" job was as an accident claims investigator and settlement negotiator for a major insurance company. A prolific antiques and fine art collector specializing in period English drinking glasses and Wedgwood jasper, having large collections of both. He and his wife still retain an active interest in a retail antiques centre operating from a defunct cinema in Herne Bay high street, frequently visited by well known TV and media celebrities in the world of antiques and fine art, and who were in fact instrumental in encouraging him to write this book.