how to clean antique french oak table?

Start with a soft dry cloth to remove dust. Oak has an open grain that traps dirt, so gentle brushing helps dislodge debris without scratching the surface. Feed the timber occasionally with a good quality beeswax. Apply it sparingly with a rag, leave it to haze, and buff it off. Avoid modern silicone sprays as they leave a stubborn film.

My dining room gets quite a lot of direct sunlight in the afternoons, will this fade a cherry wood provincial french table over time?

Direct sunlight alters all woods eventually. Cherry tends to lighten and lose some of its red tones when exposed to strong UV light day after day. You can manage this by drawing the blinds during the brightest hours. Keeping a runner or a tablecloth over the surface also protects the timber, though you should move it sometimes so the top fades evenly.

what are the different leg styles?

Country pieces normally have square tapering legs or turned balusters. These sturdy shapes provided solid support for heavy farmhouse tops. Finer urban tables feature cabriole legs. These curve outward at the knee and taper down to a delicate foot, changing the whole profile of the piece. Later urban styles shifted to straight, fluted legs. This mirrored the classical architecture popular at the time.

I have noticed a wide gap running right down the middle of the top boards on a farmhouse table I'm looking at buying, is this normal for these old ones?

It happens frequently. Central heating dries the air in modern homes, causing old boards to shrink and pull apart at the seams. They're usually structurally sound despite the gap.

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Antique French Tables from the 19th Century

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Antique French tables cover a massive range of forms, from heavy oak farmhouse designs built for rural dining to delicate Parisian writing desks. They served households across the social spectrum, providing solid surfaces for communal meals, card games, or refined correspondence.