removing black color from old piano

From: Nancy
Date: 18 Jun 1999
Time: 21:51:05
Remote Name: 205.188.192.38

Comments

I have a piano from the early 1900s that is a shiny black, except where the black has rubbed off to reveal a reddish wood that seems to match the piano stool. A relative reports that the piano was in a room with a coal fired stove. How can I tell if the black is paint or from exposure to coal and how would I be able to remove the black?