{"product_id":"out-of-the-attic-inventing-antiques-in-twentieth-century-new-england-paperback","title":"Out of the Attic: Inventing Antiques in Twentieth-Century New England - Paperback","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eBriann G. Greenfield\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this era of Antiques Roadshow and eBay, it is hard to imagine a time when Americans did not treasure the home furnishings of elite early American families. But as this book demonstrates, antiquing-particularly the practice of valuing old things for their aesthetic qualities-is a relatively recent invention whose origins can be found in the early years of the twentieth century. Although nineteenth-century Americans did appreciate heirlooms, they saw them as memory markers, tangible representations of honored ancestors or local history. \u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e In \u003ci\u003eOut of the Attic\u003c\/i\u003e, Briann G. Greenfield traces the transformation of antiques from family keepsakes to valuable artistic objects, examining the role of collectors, dealers, and museum makers in the construction of a new tradition based on the aesthetic qualities of early American furnishings. While recognizing the significance of antiques as symbols of an enduring American culture, Greenfield also delves behind popular rhetoric to examine the development of a retail structure specifically designed to facilitate the buying and selling of old wares. With antique shops proliferating all over New England, pickers going door-to-door in search of \"finds,\" and forgers taking illicit advantage of growing demand, antique owners and collectors found themselves trying to navigate a retail market characterized by escalating prices and high stakes purchases. In this sense, antiques functioned as more than remnants of a treasured past; they became modern consumer goods. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e The book is divided into a series of case studies, each intended to illuminate some aspect of \"the dynamic of consumer history.\" One chapter examines the role of Jewish dealers in promoting American antiques; another profiles Jessie Baker Gardner, a small-time collector and would-be museum maker from Providence, Rhode Island. Greenfield also looks at the institutionalization of antiques, with chapters focusing on Henry Flynt of Deerfield, Massachusetts, who embraced the \"aestheticization of antiques\" in the 1940s and 1950s, and on Smithsonian curator C. Malcolm Watkins, who challenged the decorative art market during the 1950s and 1960s by purchasing old tools and crude furniture for the nation's museum.\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003eBriann G. Greenfield is associate professor of history and coordinator of the public history program at Central Connecticut State University.\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 256\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.8 x 8.92 x 6.06 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e October 01, 2009\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":52914978619708,"sku":"9781558497108","price":101.9,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0975\/7265\/1324\/files\/RFpzejlSbm1PYm13WXhOd1Nweld6Zz09.webp?v=1774357290","url":"https:\/\/barginbooks.co\/products\/out-of-the-attic-inventing-antiques-in-twentieth-century-new-england-paperback","provider":"Books Fare ","version":"1.0","type":"link"}