Would the maker have really been thinking that the thing being made would still be usefull 50, 100 or 1000 years later? Sure, it could be used to look that far ahead, but would they have been concerned about longevity of the device itself?
On one hand, it's hard to imagine a craftsperson considering the life of a piece beyond the life of the craftsperson themselves.
But I suspect a craftsperson is first and foremost focused on the quality of materials, quality of the construction — no doubt in large part so that the piece is durable. The degree to which that adds to the longevity is probably unimportant.
Like arguing wether the workbench you built will last 200 years or 400. What does it matter and who could know?
