Unique Desk Lamps
1990s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Marble, Aluminum
Vintage 1960s French Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum, Iron
Mid-20th Century English Industrial Table Lamps
Aluminum
Early 20th Century European Arts and Crafts Table Lamps
Copper, Brass
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Table Lamps
Brass, Metal
Antique Late 19th Century American Victorian Table Lamps
Brass
Early 20th Century American Industrial Table Lamps
Steel
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Malachite, Brass
20th Century American Industrial Table Lamps
Metal
Early 20th Century Arts and Crafts Table Lamps
Brass
Mid-20th Century Belgian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Iron, Chrome
Vintage 1960s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Copper, Steel
Early 20th Century European Arts and Crafts Table Lamps
Bronze, Brass
2010s Italian Table Lamps
Metal
2010s Italian Table Lamps
Metal
Early 20th Century European Arts and Crafts Table Lamps
Brass
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Ceramic
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1950s Unknown Hollywood Regency Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1930s Czech Bauhaus Table Lamps
Metal, Steel
Vintage 1960s Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1970s Finnish Brutalist Table Lamps
Copper
Early 20th Century American Industrial Table Lamps
Steel
Vintage 1960s Dutch Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Brass, Steel
21st Century and Contemporary French Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum, Chrome, Steel
Antique 19th Century Mexican Modern Table Lamps
Onyx
Late 20th Century Table Lamps
Metal
21st Century and Contemporary French Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum, Steel
2010s Italian Table Lamps
Marble, Nickel
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Brass, Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Brass, Aluminum, Metal
20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum
2010s Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum, Stainless Steel
2010s Italian Post-Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum, Stainless Steel
2010s American Post-Modern Floor Lamps
Brass
2010s Dutch Post-Modern Table Lamps
Oak
Early 20th Century British Industrial Table Lamps
Steel
21st Century and Contemporary French Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum, Steel
Vintage 1970s Italian Table Lamps
Chrome, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Australian Table Lamps
Aluminum
2010s Lebanese Post-Modern Table Lamps
Metal
2010s Lebanese Post-Modern Table Lamps
Copper
Vintage 1930s French Art Deco Table Lamps
Metal, Nickel
21st Century and Contemporary French Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Steel, Aluminum
21st Century and Contemporary French Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Aluminum, Steel
2010s American Industrial Table Lamps
Brass
1990s American Space Age Table Lamps
Metal
20th Century French Art Deco Table Lamps
Brass
20th Century Mexican Modern Table Lamps
Onyx
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Brass
Mid-20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal
2010s Lebanese Post-Modern Table Lamps
Stainless Steel
Vintage 1950s Bauhaus Table Lamps
Metal
Late 20th Century American Modern Table Lamps
Stainless Steel
Early 20th Century Art Nouveau Table Lamps
Bronze
Vintage 1980s German Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1970s Italian Minimalist Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1970s German Space Age Table Lamps
Glass
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Unique Desk Lamps For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much are Unique Desk Lamps?
Finding the Right Table Lamps for You
Well-crafted antique and vintage table lamps do more than provide light; the right fixture-and-table combination can add a focal point or creative element to any interior.
Proper table lamps have long been used for lighting our most intimate spaces. Perfect for lighting your nightstand or reading nook, table lamps play an integral role in styling an inviting room. In the years before electricity, lamps used oil. Today, a rewired 19th-century vintage lamp can still provide a touch of elegance for a study.
After industrial milestones such as mass production took hold in the Victorian era, various design movements sought to bring craftsmanship and innovation back to this indispensable household item. Lighting designers affiliated with Art Deco, which originated in the glamorous roaring ’20s, sought to celebrate modern life by fusing modern metals with dark woods and dazzling colors in the fixtures of the era. The geometric shapes and gilded details of vintage Art Deco table lamps provide an air of luxury and sophistication that never goes out of style.
After launching in 1934, Anglepoise lamps soon became a favorite among modernist architects and designers, who interpreted the fixture as “a machine for lighting,” just as Le Corbusier had reimagined the house as “a machine for living in.” The popular task light owed to a collaboration between a vehicle-suspension engineer by the name of George Carwardine and a West Midlands springs manufacturer, Herbert Terry & Sons.
Some mid-century modern table lamps, particularly those created by the likes of Joe Colombo and the legendary lighting artisans at Fontana Arte, bear all the provocative hallmarks associated with Space Age design. Sculptural and versatile, the Louis Poulsen table lamps of that period were revolutionary for their time and still seem innovative today.
If you are looking for something more contemporary, industrial table lamps are demonstrative of a newly chic style that isn’t afraid to pay homage to the past. They look particularly at home in any rustic loft space amid exposed brick and steel beams.
Before you buy a desk lamp or table lamp for your living room, consider your lighting needs. The Snoopy lamp, designed in 1967, or any other “banker’s lamp” (shorthand for the Emeralite desk lamps patented by H.G. McFaddin and Company), provides light at a downward angle that is perfect for writing, while the Fontana table lamp and the beloved Grasshopper lamp by Greta Magnusson-Grossman each yield a soft and even glow. Some table lamps require lampshades to be bought separately.
Whether it’s a classic antique Tiffany table lamp, a Murano glass table lamp or even a bold avant-garde fixture custom-made by a contemporary design firm, the right table lamp can completely transform a room. Find the right one for you on 1stDibs.
- Who invented the desk lamp?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertMarch 22, 2024
No one knows for sure who invented the desk lamp, as many engineers worked on designs for lamps during the 1920s. Many experts cite the Anglepoise lamp, however, as the earliest iteration of the modern desk lamp. Since its 1934 debut, this ingenious task light has become one of the most celebrated examples of industrial design.
How the Anglepoise came to be is the stuff of design legend: In 1932, a vehicle-suspension engineer by the name of George Carwardine joined forces with a West Midlands springs manufacturer, Herbert Terry & Sons, to create a mechanism by which opposed springs would, as Carwardine explained, exert a “unidirectional constant force” on a pivoted lever that could counteract the force of gravity.
This invention was not destined for an auto but for a lamp Carwardine was developing. The innovation would allow the piece’s articulated arm to be moved with ease to almost any position and remain there. As the product of engineering acumen rather than fashion, the Anglepoise soon became a favorite among modernist architects and designers, who interpreted it as “a machine for lighting,” just as Le Corbusier had reimagined the house as “a machine for living in.”
The Angelpoise's rivals include the 1930 Bestlite, which was one of the earliest Bauhaus-influenced designs, created by Robert Dudley Best, who had studied under Walter Gropius at the Bauhaus in Dessau. German modernist Karl Trabert’s 1930s desk lamp for Schanzenbach & Co. was notable for its domed shade above a hinged arm.
Find vintage table lamps and other lighting on 1stDibs. - What is the best desk lamp?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertOctober 26, 2021The best desk lamp is a matter of preference — the right fixture can help you work more efficiently while also reducing eye strain. LED desk lamps in the 2700K to 4500K color temperature range often provide a warm and pleasing light under which to work. Shop a collection of antique, vintage, and modern desk lamps from some of the world’s top dealers on 1stDibs.
- What is a good desk lamp?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertSeptember 28, 2021A good desk lamp is going to make a substantial difference in any home, office or studio. The ideal desk lamp should provide apt task lighting, be easy to use, and also be aesthetically pleasing. Find a wide range of unique and elegant desk lamps on 1stDibs today.
- What is the best LED desk lamp?1 Answer1stDibs ExpertOctober 5, 2021There are many types of best LED desk lamps for your home — it's really a matter of preference. On 1stDibs, there are modern, mid-century modern desk lamps and other lighting to choose from.
- 1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022The desk lamps with the green shade are called banker’s lamps. Banker’s lamps are green because it is believed the color helps to encourage concentration and is mentally soothing. It is also said that green helps with eye strain. You can shop a selection of banker’s lamps from some of the world’s top sellers on 1stDibs.
- 1stDibs ExpertApril 5, 2022British designer George Carwardine designed the Anglepoise desk lamp. Before creating the light fixture, he worked as an engineer designing automobile suspension systems. The first Anglepoise lamps debuted in 1931. You can find a variety of Anglepoise desk lamps on 1stDibs.
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You Don’t Need a Fictional Fairy to Get This Real Pinocchio Lamp
Warm chalet style meets cool Bauhaus functionality in Pietro Cascella’s cleverly carved creation.
Why Is Italy Such a Hotbed of Cool Design?
Patrizio Chiarparini of Brooklyn’s Duplex gallery sheds light on the lasting legacy of Italy’s postwar furniture boom.
With a High-Tech Flagship and Cool Collabs, Lladró Is Breaking the Mold for Porcelain Production
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Paavo Tynell’s Snowflake Chandelier Warms Up Any Room
This circa 1950 piece by the legendary Finnish lighting designer spent the past several decades in a family's home in Michigan.
NASA Parachutes Inspired Lighting Designer Bec Brittain’s New Collection
In "Paraciphers," now on view at Emma Scully Gallery in New York, Brittain introduces works that were more than a decade in the making.
This Handsome Leather Pendant Light Is Crafted Using Saddle-Making Techniques
The Doma by L’Aviva Home nods to Colombia’s equestrian heritage.
Celebrate Spring Year-Round with This Lush Murano-Glass Chandelier
Hand-blown glass makes the Italian fixture glow like dew-covered leaves in the sun.