What wood are inlaid mirrors usually made from?

Mahogany, in most cases. It is named in 143 of 301 titles, more than every other timber put together, with walnut, rosewood and satinwood as the main alternatives. Rarer grounds turn up once each: olive wood, cherrywood, beech, Oregon pine, fruitwood, maple, amboyna, harewood, burr yew and macassar ebony.

Which period do most of these come from?

The dealer-entered dates run from 1800 to 1930. Edwardian is the largest single label, followed by the loose 19th Century and 1900s, then Georgian, Victorian and Regency. Much of the dating is approximate rather than exact. 19th Century, 1800s, 1890s and 1920s are ranges, not years, and 109 listings carry a clean single year. A few pieces sit outside that span altogether, including William and Mary cushion mirrors given c.1690 and c.1695.

Is inlay always wood?

No. Brass appears in 17 titles, and mother of pearl, bone, ivory and tortoiseshell all show up in the archive, along with boulle and Tunbridge ware mosaic. The Eastern frames account for much of the non-wood inlay, Hoshiarpur brass and bone work among them.

What is the difference between marquetry and stringing?

Stringing is fine lines of contrasting wood let into the frame, and it does the decorating on a great many of the plainer Edwardian mirrors. Marquetry is built from shaped pieces of veneer forming patterns or pictures. It appears in 31 titles, Dutch marquetry among them, and sits higher in the range than line inlay.

Why are cheval mirrors priced above wall mirrors?

Size and form. Cheval mirrors are full-length and free-standing, and at 47 titles they account for most of the upper reaches of the range. Small wall and toilet mirrors occupy the lowest positions, with the repeated Edwardian inlaid mahogany oval the most common of them.

Do any unusual forms turn up in this category?

A few, each appearing once. A shaving stand, an Edwardian Last Look Mirror, a folding olive-wood travel mirror from Sorrento and a triptych cheval. There is also a table-top cheval combined with a jewellery cabinet, and a pair of Spanish Colonial tortoiseshell enconchado mirrors from Peru or Mexico.

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Antique Inlaid Mirrors

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A wooden-framed mirror decorated with inlay rather than carving or gilding, made to hang on a wall, stand on a dressing table or swing full-length on the floor.