Antique 18th century oak mule chest restoration

http://www.chapmanrestoration.co.uk

A 18th century large oak coffer come in recently for restoration after being through a house fire. The furniture has suffered from smoke and water damage. The furniture had been left for several months to dry out in the workshop. This gave it plenty of time for the moisture to dry out

Evenly after allowing the timber to dry and move as it wanted to. The damage to the furniture required the panels to repaired ,caused by the Timber shrinking and moving .The  crossbanding around the panels and draws needed to be reglued and new veneer to be cut to replace the missing veneers .some panels had opened up and required to be reglued

Once I had completed the nessacary repairs, the furniture was gently cleaned back to remove water damage and the smoke Damage from the surface. I avoided stripping this as it would remove the patina from the wood . The furniture was then waxed with a good clear beeswax that I’ve regular use in oak furniture. This was built up over a period of the week . With a coat of wax and a buffed up each day. This gave the depth of sheen back to the future. The brass plate handles which appear to have been later was cleaned and put back on