Oh boy, is that cute! I don't know what it is, but it's adorable. I could see it in my living room, which is pretty contemporary. Did you turn it over or check it thoroughly for labels? It doesn't look that old and that separation in the corner would worry me a bit but I probably would have snapped it up. How tall is it? What did the seller have to say about it?

He said he bought it 20 years ago from an antique wholesaler. The separation on the bottom is very tight even though it doesn't look like it. I can find no label or stickers. The back is just flat planed mahogany. It is 6'5" tall. I love it because my dogs can't touch the glass! lol The bottom open shelf is open on each side. I guess what I want to say is the front bottom is the same on each side. It is open. Each bottom side has some separation on the joints that run across, but they are all very strong. The piece is solid.

In my opinion, its probably not an antique piece. It appears to be a piece carved in Southeast Asia, although it has some Art Nouveau qualities to the design.

Nope....that's old.
although I have never seen one exactly like it, because likely there never was one exactly like it.
It's fairly typical of late victorian curios, etagiers, whatnots etc. It definitly has Nouveau elements
They loves curvy curley carved pieces to display all their curvey painted stuff.
Here's one...
http://www.burchardgalleries.com/auctions/2001/mar2501/l001.jpg
And another
http://www.laurelauction.com/0118f%20Etagere.JPG

Thanks everyone for your input. Linda, I also feel that it is an old piece. The carvings are so well done and do have the Nouveau influence. I think you are right about it being "the only one". I bet a have looked at pictures of 5,000 curios the past 2 weeks and never saw anything quite like it. I felt the price($275)was worth it even if it was a reproduction, simply because I really liked it.

Thats a great price. I wasn't diminishing it in any way by saying it could be Asian, they often made versions of period styles. There is something about some of the roundedness of the edges, in addition to the Nouveau qualities that made me think of that.

Yeah....it does have a little of the "Malasia" feel to it....but the lock is what made me pretty sure it isn't.

I'm going to agree with Palimp with this one. It isn't quite right for an older piece but really no one can honestly tell without different pictures :) A picture of the back from the inside and the outside, and a picture of the bottom might help. The underside of the shelfs would also perhaps help.

To me, the carving isn't fine enough for a piece of this style from the art noveau period...it's nice, but not quite nice enough for a piece that would be planned with this type of detail. The detail isn't right for an old french or german piece either. Almost not heavy enough :)

A close up of the lock might help, but not just the outside (which is easily reproduced) but the workings on the door frame as well as the back inside the cabinet.

One big clue to me is the mitered corners where you see carved details. Where you see the separation. It's not really "normal" for a piece with any significant age on it. (You'd see separations but not at miters and likely you wouldn't even see miters there if it was carved with any attention to detail). You see joins done differently so that the carving won't split with climate changes. That typically happens when wood is used that's not dried properly (given the even splitting around the piece) or if it's made in one extreme climate and shipped to another (ie an aisan piece shipped to a dry climate).

There's a reason you don't see the Keno brothers give values on pieces until they've twisted them up and down and turned them inside out :) The details that give the best clues are hidden in the construction more often than not, both on decorative items, and furnishings :)

It is however a lovely piece! I would have to see a lot of convincing evidence to want to put it in a collection of specific period pieces...but to use it and enjoy it :) I think you did well for your money. (Another clue...if it were a highly craved piece from the art noveau period...i'd think the cost would be significantly MORE!)

For comparison, here is a piece of European Art Nouveau that has similar elements to your piece. There is a combination of flatness and curvaceousness to the piece that differentiates it from the "pillowed" carving of your Nouveau piece which is what made me think Asia.

Art Nouveau encompassed a short period of design popularity because the era was shifting toward more mass production, and these pieces obviously take a lot of hand work. The influences, however were far reaching.

For reference, this French piece of Art Nouveau, from 1st Dibs, which is retail, not auction pricing is slightly under $20,000. (click on the image to make it bigger)

Oh my goodness this has been fun! On closer inspection the key lock has been added. The last pic I posted does show filled in marks where there used to be another handle above and below the lock. I have also found little cut out circles of thin wood that appear to cover nail heads or something. Very hard to see without very close inspection. The top is dome shaped not flat. The back wood has pulled away from the nails a little like it has shrunk. The shelves are solid wood but the second one has a major crack. My first impression of the cabinet was oh...too smooth, too flat, my mind said, "is this plastic". I ignored most of it because I liked it, and the price, I thought, was right. My camera battery is dead! I will try to get close shots later. I do have to agree with palimsest and igloochic that it is probably Asian. When do you think the cabinet was made?

Probably after he said he bought it from the importer (could be last week heh heh). Antique importer...gad that's a funny one. Does the defination of "Antique" differ in Asia?

The age is not something you'll be able to find most likely, and really it's not an important factor. It's much like buying new furniture now. Enjoy it for a few years, maybe even more and then you can move on :) I don't think the price was terrible (though he paid less than half of that I guarantee). It's still pretty :) It does not have to be very old to be pretty!

Thanks for sharing the details you just did with the forum though! It's really important for people to learn about issues like this before they invest in antiques. So many are fooled by hardware (easy to put old stuff on new furniture...unless you look at how it was put on you might not know) and as you say, hide the little details that give away the real clues (ie those nail covers).

I see so many posts here that make me smile. I most often don't want to see the pretty outside heh heh, I like to look INSIDE and BEHIND and BELOW a piece to learn more about it (which to a goofy girl like me is fun). You should see me in antique stores LOL

Don't feel you were ripped off. Maybe fibbed to :) Or maybe he was fibbed to at one time, but it's still pretty and should give you enjoyment for a few years. Don't tell anyone it's not an antique...and don't let them turn it on it's head to check heh heh

There is only one thing which disturbs me about this piece. It has been refinished and kind of "restored". I wonder why anyone would go through the work of stripping a piece like this? I'm not an antique person. Don't know anything about them. Why would someone make something cheap and then make it look like it had been lovingly restored? $$$$$ I guess that's why. lol

It's likely not been "restored" but instead a finish was applied because the quality of the wood wasn't good enough for a clean finish on it's own with oil. That's VERY common with the Asian pieces. They almost look like a restoration (sometimes a bad one LOL) and yes, that's done the way it is so that you question it and you'll pay more just in case it's an antique :) There is a reason they're not imitating 1970's coffee tables...they don't sell :oP