The Antiquarian: an expert guide to late Georgian furniture

The Northamptonshire-based antiques dealership Ron Green is very much a family business. Founded in 1955 by the titular Ron Green and his son Michael, it has since employed four generations of Greens, providing “authentic, honest and tasteful pieces” to trade and private customers. Representing the millennial wing of the family, dealer Will Green joined the team in his late teens and has been working under the Ron Green name for the past decade. This April, however, he is launching a sub-selection of pieces under his own name – a sort of antiques-world diffusion brand – which will offer a distillation of his own distinct values when it comes to sourcing and curating antiques. “I hope it will allow people to understand what things I personally look for when buying – items that give a relaxed and well-worn feel, both grand and humble.” In addition to exploring this new, more subtly patinated mood, the Will Green collection will explore a more diverse range of stock, from lighting and textiles to decorative items. However, says Will, “its core is naturally going to be the same: furniture. It’s what my family have always specialised in.”

Though Will’s interests when it comes to his trade range far and wide, he is particularly keen on the designs of the late Georgian period (from the middle of the 18th century to the early 19th). Below, he shares a few pointers on the peculiarities of the era, explaining its enduring charm, distinctive details and what to look for when buying yourself.

The look:

“Stylistically, Georgian furniture tends to be more restrained than Victorian. Straighter lines, better proportions, less fuss. The Georgians nailed the mix of functionality, design and quality, and it’s hard to beat the patina of untouched Georgian furniture, whether that’s a surface of timber, paint, or gilt. As it ages, it softens, and just gets better and better.”

The materials:

“The most common timber you’ll find in Georgian furniture is mahogany. The best sort is well figured and dense. Try and stay away from the lightweight, open-grained stuff. When it comes to upholstery, the Georgians never used springs. They stuffed with horsehair. Springs came into use after 1850.”

The details:

“The Georgians tended to use brass swan-neck handles instead of wooden knobs (these were more of a Victorian thing). The designs of table and chair feet can sometimes be a giveaway. One of the plainest forms was a simple ‘pad-foot’, which then inspired variants like the ‘ball and claw’, and ‘hairy-paw’ feet. Be careful with this though, as lots of reproduction furniture mimicked these designs.”

What to look for:

“For me, anything with patina is key. It can be grand or humble, but patina will always give something soul. I’m also drawn to architecturally inspired pieces – neo-Palladian or ‘Gothick’ for example. These can add power to a room and well executed examples are far from common. Georgian mirrors are particularly good. I love the Rococo style and neo-Palladian ‘tabernacle’ type, especially when they’re stone-painted.”

What to avoid:

“I would always aim to stay away from pieces that have been re-polished. The process tends to strip away character and leaves a shiny surface that people are afraid to put things on. When buying, always ask if anything has been replaced or is ‘later’. I find a lot of customers aren’t that bothered if a handle has been changed or a small piece of veneer has been repaired, but major structural elements, like legs or feet, can be more of an issue. Especially when the later timber simply can’t match the quality of the original.”

Images, top to bottom: a George III ‘Chippendale’ mahogany side table; a pair of George II-style mahogany side chairs, in the manner of Robert Manwaring; a George II drop-leaf dining table with hoof feet; a Regency giltwood convex wall mirror; a simple Georgian ‘C’ scroll bracket; a large George III mahogany clothes press. All images by Christopher Horwood, courtesy of Will Green at Ron Green.

Further reading

William Green antiques at Ron Green
Georgian Style and Design for Contemporary Living, Henrietta Spencer-Churchill, 2018