How can I determine the top finish on my recently purchased table?

Maybe it's a poly finish if it has been recently refinished. Here is some information on how to test it but I would do it in a hidden spot not on the table top itself.

https://www.hunker.com/12437441/how-to-tell-which-kind-of-finish-is-on-a-wood

Here you go. Chances are it is a polycrylic or polyurethane.

https://www.thespruce.com/care-and-cleaning-varnished-wood-furniture-1391590

https://www.bobvila.com/articles/how-to-clean-wood-furniture/

I just use a damp cotton cloth, run under hottest tap water then wrung out as best as you can. Wipe table down and immediately after with a dry cotton or microfiber cloth. You can always purchase a glass top for the table if you wish.

I would go with a barely damp microfiber cloth. Poly is the most popular finish for tables and it would be safe.

Hi Retta, here is a cool link that helps you figure out what it is, hope it helps

https://www.woodmagazine.com/materials-guide/finishes/what-finish-is-that-anyway

If its good furniture, it frequently is finished with shellac or spar varnish, then buffed off with steel wool to remove the gloss, and then paste waxed and buffed.

I refinished mine and only use a damp microfiber cloth. Odds are it is a water based poly.

I have a very inexpensive D.R. table which this morning I just dusted and then wet down with damp cloth before putting a table cloth on it. I too have no idea what the finish is but it is no problem to keep clean. What I like about my table is that the sides are curved slightly inwards and that the nearby china cabinet has an outward curve! Sometimes very simple things make us happy!