Does painted mean the wardrobe is already painted?

Not always. Roughly as many titles offer a bare carcass to wax or paint as describe a finish already on the piece, so the word covers both the surface it has and the surface it is waiting for. Titles that specify original paint, original paintwork or original scumble faux oak are pointing at an old finish. Those reading to wax/paint are pointing at stripped pine.

What does knockdown mean on a wardrobe?

That the carcass comes apart into flat sections, sides, doors, back and cornice, so it can be carried through doorways and up staircases. Fifty of 230 titles advertise it, worded as knockdown, dismantles, break down or breakdown. A practical feature that has turned into a selling term in its own right.

How old are these wardrobes?

Of the 230 listings, 132 carry a clean year, and that field runs from 1790 to 1930. The earliest end is held by an 18th-century Continental piece, the latest by 1930s Art Deco examples. The 1890s is the busiest single decade label at 49 listings, with the 1910s next at 34. Only a handful fall before 1860. Others sit under era words instead of years: Victorian on 47 titles, 19th Century on 19, Georgian on 16.

Are French armoires common in this category?

Yes. French appears in 59 titles and armoire in 53, with Continental on 31, so painted armoires make up something like a third to two-fifths of the archive. They turn up in Louis XV and Louis XVI styling, in oak and walnut as well as pine, and grey-painted and mirrored versions recur.

Which types sit at the top of the range?

Satinwood robes with inlay and hand-painted panels, triple and compactum forms among them, though only 8 titles use the word satinwood. Carved armoires, gilding and parcel gilt, chinoiserie and harlequin painting also sit high, each surfacing only once or twice. Matched pairs land near the top too.

What else turns up besides bedroom wardrobes?

Hall wardrobes and hall robes, shallower cupboards meant for coats, account for around a dozen titles, some described as one piece rather than knockdown. A small distinct run of Hungarian pine-and-oak hall wardrobes appears, plus single Swedish, Dutch, Italian gilded and Scandinavian examples. Arts and Crafts, Aesthetic Movement ash triples and Art Deco pieces make up a minor share. Around sixteen painted wardrobes are listed on Sellingantiques in a year, spread across 45 different dealers.

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Antique Painted Wardrobes

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A full-height clothes cupboard whose surface carries paint, either an old decorated or scumbled finish or a bare pine carcass sold ready for the buyer to wax or paint.