An Australian blackwood carved mirror in the style of John K…
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An Australian blackwood carved mirror in the style of John K Blogg circa 1910, the rectangular panel finely carved with a griffin below an oval inset bevel edge mirror 39.5 x 50.5 cm.
blackwood. One of the best known and most widely used Australian timbers, blackwood is a member of the Acacia (wattle) family and grows in eastern Australia from about Adelaide in South Australia, as far north as Cairns in Queensland.
The largest, straightest and tallest trees come from the wet forest and swamps of north-west Tasmania where it is grown commercially.
Blackwood timber colours range across a wide spectrum, from a very pale honey colour through to a dark chocolate with streaks of red tinge. However, the straight grain timber is not the most prized or valuable, that honour falls to blackwood with a wavy, fiddleback pattern, which is used both in the solid and as a veneer. Fiddleback was only used on the finest examples of furniture.
The timber became popular for furniture-making around 1880 and its use has continued in limited quantities to the present time.
The largest, straightest and tallest trees come from the wet forest and swamps of north-west Tasmania where it is grown commercially.
Blackwood timber colours range across a wide spectrum, from a very pale honey colour through to a dark chocolate with streaks of red tinge. However, the straight grain timber is not the most prized or valuable, that honour falls to blackwood with a wavy, fiddleback pattern, which is used both in the solid and as a veneer. Fiddleback was only used on the finest examples of furniture.
The timber became popular for furniture-making around 1880 and its use has continued in limited quantities to the present time.
manner of .... / style of ...... A cataloguing term where the item, in the opinion of the cataloguer is a work in the style of the artist, craftsman or designer, possibly of a later period.
bevel / chamfer. An edge that is not at right angles to the nearest edge, but slopes at another angle, sometimes 45 degrees, but can be more or less. A bevel or chamfer is used in furniture making to soften the easily damaged sharp surface that would be created by a right angle join. In mirrors and glass, a less-angled bevel is used to accentuate the lines of the surrounding frame.
circa. A Latin term meaning 'about', often used in the antique trade to give an approximate date for the piece, usually considered to be five years on either side of the circa year. Thus, circa 1900 means the piece was made about 1900, probably between 1895 and 1905. The expression is sometimes abbreviated to c.1900.
The buyers premium is an additional percentage charge on the hammer price of the item, imposed by the auction house to cover administrative costs. The buyers premium percentage varies between auction houses, with a range of 12.5% to 22%.