How do I tell if my furniture is really Victorian?

Victorian furniture was made roughly from the 1830s to 1900, and it comes in several styles: Rococo Revival with carved flowers and curves, Renaissance Revival with heavy architectural carving, and Eastlake with straight lines and incised geometric decoration. Walnut, rosewood and mahogany are common woods, and marble tops are typical of dressers and tables.

Construction tells you more than style, because Victorian styles were widely copied later. Pull out a drawer and look at the dovetails. Earlier pieces often have fewer, uneven hand-cut dovetails, while later 1800s pieces may have machine-cut joints. Look for saw marks on drawer bottoms and backs, solid wood rather than plywood or particle board, and wear in places where hands and feet would naturally touch.

Shrinkage is another clue. Old round tabletops often measure slightly oval because wood shrinks across the grain over time. Old screws have off-center slots, and old surfaces show oxidation on unfinished wood.

Phillips screws, staples, plywood and perfectly uniform dovetails usually mean later manufacture. When in doubt, an appraiser or auction company can examine it.