Why we stopped selling 18th Century Reproductions

In the 80's and 90's and first part of the new Millennium, The Keeping Room was a leader in selling high quality American Reproductions, but that market collapsed and demand dwindled to almost nothing for that style. I am often asked why we don't bring it back and here's why.

Yesterday I was at Potomack Auctions picking up an original artwork piece, and spend some time looking at a few very high quality antiques they had that are actually going off on auction as I type this. The prices here are ridiculously low....it makes me sad to see how depressed these prices are. There is no way you can get a modern reproduction, even if made in China for what the original antiques are selling for. There is a tiger maple bed here (terrible photos) that has huge, expensive wood stock - I marveled at it yesterday - that is going to sell for about $ 1,000. It would cost $ 10,000 to build it today new.

If I were a younger man......I'd be buying this stuff up. This is a down cycle for this look, and it will come back, it always does. It may be another 30 to 50 years before it does, but it will. Now the "trend" is to buy these pieces, sand them and paint them, and install new hardware on them. In effect, ruining the pieces. So that will make the survivors worth that much more down the road. If you have ANY interest in this category of furniture, now is the time to start collecting it. Auction price is probably 5% to 10% of what it would have been sold for 30 years ago.

https://www.potomackcompany.com/auct...ngs_93ZCYHH5ZJ

That cherry 65" desk sold for $125, someone got a steal!

Yes they did. You could not even buy the lumber for a cherry desk for $ 125.

To put things into perspective, they just finished selling off Ruth Bader Ginsberg's personal items from her Watergate Apartment. I saw all the items yesterday, including this drawing from her grandson on plain construction paper that went for $ 12,000 before the buyer''s premium.

https://www.potomackcompany.com/auct...nd_9734B449E0/