Original internal doors - how can I tell?

[ASauvignonADay]

Can't find any info or indicators online! How can I tell if the internal doors in my late Victorian flat are original? They're currently painted white. 4 panels, and you can see beneath the paint marks where an older handle/lock was. Don't want to go to the trouble of taking any paint off if they are cheap copies!

Whatever you do, don't get them dipped. Ours split as they were original.

Usually style, how solid they are, etc are good indicators. When originally fitted they probably had rim locks, which are surface mounted locks - if these have been changed you can often see the signs of filling and repairs. If you know any of the neighbours whose buildings are the same as yours, identical doors there is a really good sign. Less so within your building because all the doors may have been replaced at some time, especially if a house has been converted to flats.

Four panels sounds Victorian, but unless they're made of oak or mahogany (unlikely), they would have been painted originally. Stripped doors is a 20th / 21st century fashion. Victorians painted softwoods, or used painted grain effects to make them look like hardwoods.

If they are exactly 800mm wide, quite slim and feel quite light then probably new. Also if the edges of the mouldings look sharp and neat they are probably new. If there are various dents and notches, lots of layers of paint making the moulding edges softer, they are all slightly different sizes, and feel thick and heavy, probably original.