Anyone Have Any Idea Who/Where/When This May Have Been Made??

surely is a beautiful table

-- ~ Debbie, Canada (http://www.execulink.com/~yohan)

Garage sale—I am sensing a real bargain. That is a fine table.

I don’t know if anyone else noticed it because the polyurethane was badly chipped and marred… I had to look really closely to notice nothing was wrong with the table itself.. I paid $45 for it.

If you only paid $45 for the table you definitely got a bargain. I love the inlay. It really adds a nice element to the table’s design.

I would like to see a post when you complete the refinishing. I am sure that it will be gorgeous.

-- Challenges are what make life interesting; overcoming them is what makes life meaningful- Joshua Marine

Having repaired a few of these tables myself. here is where to look. Turn the table over, and look on the underside of the top or along the back rail. Most manufactures will put their marks there. If you can’t find a maker’s mark underneith, that can mean one of two things. First, the manufacture used a paper lable (you may see where it was attached) or it was never marked. If there was no mark, it is almost impossible to determine origin. If you look closely at the photo of the ball you included, it seems a bit out of round. That would lead me to beleive that this table was not made in great numbers and may even be hand carved. I would have to look at it more closely. Another tell on the quality of the piece is the construction. Is the table top attached with clips or glue blocks? I could go on an on about this but in the end, I would have to see the peice in person. It is a beautiful table and worth much more than you paid for it. It is definately worth the effort to bring it back.

-- Greg - Charles Town, WV

Greg, thanks for the comments! I will check all you mentioned tonight.

The legs are a very hard wood and do appear to not be uniform (likely not machine made). I’ve re-finished a number of heirlooms my wife inherited but none were as detailed (or as rewarding) as this piece. Funny what people sell at garage sales…!

Turn it over and see what is under the veneer top. The construction will always tell you the source. I see mitered corners and veneer. To me that means a substrate of plywood or MDF if it is modern. If it is very old it would have to have hand made plywood laminated in the shop or the top would have expansion and contraction problems. It looks very nice.

-- Thos. Angle, Jordan Valley, Oregon

You surely got a bargain, there! I like how you cleaned up some of the top to reveal the hidden beauty!

I am sure you will have an heirloom when you finish the jo!

God Bless,
Hawg

-- Saving barnwood from the scrapyards

No idea about the history but it’s a nice piece of furniture. welcome to Lumberjocks.

-- Grumpy - "Always look on the bright side of life"- Monty Python

It is indeed a beautiful table, and from your description and photos, finely made. In my opinion, because of the height, it is a coffee table. Coffee tables did not enter into households until the twentieth century. So, without seeing the hardware and construction, that would be my starting point in dating the piece.
As for identifying the maker (I suppose you have already combed the piece for a label or signature of some kind) I can’t help you.
Judging from your pictures, the inlay and gadrooning are gorgeous, it is safe to say that it will be a fine antique one day. Probably worth at least ten times what you paid for it. I hope this helps you, Christopher.
And welcome to the community. There is a lot of positivity here.

-- Peace in Wood ~ http://www.etsy.com/shop/DustyNewt

I really appreciate all of the input. This weekend for me is dedicated to finishing the table rejuvination (and watching the game, we live in Scottsdale but purposely didn’t get tickets…).

Just to let all y’all know, I have told my brother about your site (he is extremely tallented and can create/re-create virtually any piece, currently in to Frank Lloyd Wright maybe ‘cuz he was a local figure). He got those skills from my dad who created some absolutely incredible furniture when he decided to semi-retire. Dad’s accomplishments included a 7×5x4 solid chery armoire for my older sister and a solid cherry dove-tailed (no metal whatsoever) hopechest for my niece/his grandaughter. I actually may post shots of the chest he made for my (then yet-to-be-born) son from solid cherry, dovetailed drawers with mahogany accents with dowel drawer stops). His greatest ambition after being a very accomplished hydrolic engineer was to retire to Mayberry NC (Mt Ary from Cleveland) in a Lyndal (sp?) wood home.

IMHO, woodworking is a very intricate balance between art and science. In that regard, I totally enjoy breathing new life into old mis-understood and un appreciated pieces. I couldn’t, however, build one to save my life. My hat’s off to those of you who do/can. Cheers gentlemen. Chris