After my dad applid Soy Gel paint remover to the wood work:

The bank applied the ugly red stain and plastic polyurethane to all the woodwork in the house (seen on the right). I believe that the removing it exposed the original finish of the wood (on the left). Originally, they would have likely used a high quality Danish Oil type stain that penetrates deeper into the wood, rather than the cheap stuff most people use today, thus, perhaps the original stain is not so much affected by the Soy Gel?