OK, not really sure where to put this, but I picked reviews. Certainly not a manufacturer's problem, 100+ years removed? Decide for yourselves...
A cautionary tale-
When I was removing the scored/faded finish on the top of the base of the French Country Buffet (made circa 1880) I got for a song at the ReStore, I ended up with a really bad reaction to the finish or the wood, I’m not sure which. It was bad enough that I almost went to the ER for the breathing problems and a painful rash on all exposed surfaces- complete head and neck, and both arms and hands. My eyes were swelled shut enough so that I had to stagger into the bathroom to rinse them so that I could even see. I was up to 90% of both my asthma meds. I got a local medical appointment and I’m currently on serious steroids (60 mg of Prednisone per day) and am feeling better. I’m experiencing less breathing difficulty and most of the skin irritation has diminished. Given the way my exterior skin looked, I’m pretty concerned about my lingering cough. I’ve never experienced this kind of reaction, beyond a little skin irritation from a project I made from some blood wood, many years ago- which I never used again. I was trained in HazMat back in the early ‘90s, and know better for known poisons. But dust? At least I know remediation techniques, and have cleaned it up properly. Not done, yet. I wasn’t using a dust mask, either, because I was expecting those filter bags on both my ROS to do the dust collection. Yup, dumb. Those ROS have yet to be cleaned. Can’t depend on those filter bags, right? They will be rinsed with water out in the street.
OK, questions-
1. What kind of finish chemicals may have been used in that time period?
2. What kind of stains may have been used in those days?
I really feel for the workers of that era, having to potentially suffer through these exposures.