SUiTE OF FOUR THONET CIRCA 1930'S AUSTRIAN BISTRO DINING BAR BENTWOOD CHAIRS
About the Item
- Creator:Thonet (Maker)
- Dimensions:Height: 34.06 in (86.5 cm)Width: 14.97 in (38 cm)Depth: 16.93 in (43 cm)Seat Height: 18.71 in (47.5 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 4
- Style:Art Deco (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:1930s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor fading.
- Seller Location:GB
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU2823335619182
Thonet
For more than 180 years, Thonet — or Gebrüder Thonet — has produced elegant and durable tables and cabinets as well as chairs, stools and other seating that wholly blur the lines between art and design. Widely known as a trailblazer in the use of bentwood in furniture, the European manufacturer has reimagined the places in which we gather.
Noted for his skill in parquetry, German-Austrian company founder Michael Thonet received an invitation from Austrian Chancellor Prince Metternich to contribute Neo-Rococo interiors to the Liechtenstein City Palace in Vienna. The Boppard-born Thonet had honed his carpentry skills in his father’s workshop, where he carried out experiments with plywood and modified the Biedermeier chairs that populated the studio.
Thonet’s work for the chancellor raised his profile, and the cabinetmaker gained international recognition, including at London’s Great Exhibition of 1851, which featured works created by members of the Arts and Crafts movement as well as industrial products of the day. Thonet showed a range of furniture at the fair and won the bronze medal for his bentwood chairs. He incorporated his family’s company, the Thonet Brothers, with his sons in 1853.
Bentwood furniture dates as far back as the Middle Ages, but it is the 19th-century cabinetmaker Thonet who is most often associated with this now-classic technique. Thonet in 1856 patented a method for bending solid wood through the use of steam, and from there, the bentwood look skyrocketed to furniture fame. The works of renowned mid-century modern designers such as Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, and Charles and Ray Eames that put this technological advancement to use would not be as extensive or celebrated were it not for the efforts of the pioneering Thonet.
Considered the world’s oldest mass-produced chair, Michael Thonet’s ubiquitous Chair No. 14 demonstrated that his patented bentwood technology made it possible to efficiently produce furniture on an industrial scale. Now known as the 214, it won the German Sustainability Award Design for 2021, a recognition of the company’s commitment to environmentally responsible production.
Often called the Coffee House chair — the company’s first substantial order was for a Viennese coffeehouse — the No. 14 remains an icon. Thonet originally designed the chair in 1859, and it is considered the starting point for modern furniture.
The bentwood process opened doors — there were investments in machinery and new industrial processes, and the business began mass-producing furniture. By the end of the 1850s, there were additional Thonet workshops in Eastern Europe and hundreds of employees. Michael Thonet’s reputation attracted the attention of notable architects including Otto Wagner, Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.
The No. 14 was followed by the No. 18, or the Bistro chair, in 1867, and the 209, or the Architect’s chair, of which Le Corbusier was a fan. (The influential Swiss-French architect and designer used Thonet furniture in his Pavillon de l’Esprit Nouveau at the 1925 International Exposition of Decorative Arts in Paris.)
Thonet’s chair designs also appeared in artwork by Toulouse-Lautrec, John Sloan and Henri Matisse in his Interior with a Violin Case. The noteworthy Thonet rocking chair remains a marvel of construction — in the middle of the 19th century, Michael produced a series of rockers in which the different curved parts were integrated into fluid, sinuous wholes. Thanks to Thonet, the humble rocker acquired something unexpected: style. It was captured in the paintings of Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and James Tissot.
Thonet is currently split into global divisions. Thonet Industries U.S.A. was acquired in 1987 by Shelby Williams and joined the CF Group in 1999, while the Thonet brand in Germany is owned by Thonet GmbH.
Find a collection of antique Thonet furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: United Kingdom
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 14 days of delivery.
- FOUR FiNE ANTIQUE THONET CROCODILE ALLIGATOR CARVED WOOD PATINA DINING CHAIRS 4By ThonetLocated in GBRoyal House Antiques Royal House Antiques is delighted to offer for sale this stunning and very rare suite set of four original circa 1900-1920, Thonet, cafe dining chairs with the ...Category
Antique Early 1900s European Edwardian Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Wood
- Five Original circa 1920 Dinette Josef Hoffmann Thonet 811 Bergere Dining ChairsBy ThonetLocated in GBWe are delighted to offer for sale this stunning suite of five original circa 1920’s, hand made in Poland, Dinette chairs, designed by Josef Frank and J...Category
Vintage 1920s Polish Art Deco Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBentwood
- Suite of Four Swedish Walnut & Beech Wood Dining ChairsLocated in GBWe are delighted to offer for sale this lovely suite of four Swedish walnut & beech wood dining chairs A good looking and well made suite, they are vintage and have lattice cross ...Category
20th Century Swedish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsVelvet, Beech
- 3 Original circa 1920 Mundus Vienna Austria Bentwood High Back Kitchen ChairsBy Thonet-MundusLocated in GBWe are delighted to offer for sale this suite of three original fully stamped Mundus Vienna Austria, bentwood high back chairs. A very good looki...Category
Vintage 1920s Austrian Art Deco Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBentwood
- Suite of Four Original Svegards Markaryd Danish Dining Chairs with Teak FramesBy Svegards MarkarydLocated in GBWe are delighted to offer for sale this lovely suite of four original fully stamped Svegards Markaryd Danish teak dining chairs These chairs have those beautiful lines you only fi...Category
20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsTeak
- FOUR ANTIQUE ART DECO LIBERTY'S LONDON STYLE COTSWOLD DINING CHAiRS PART SUITEBy Liberty of LondonLocated in GBRoyal House Antiques Royal House Antiques is delighted to offer for sale this lovely suite of four, circa 1920’s Art Deco Liberty's London style Cotswold dining chairs which are par...Category
Vintage 1920s English Art Deco Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsOak
- 1930s Vintage Thonet Cafe Chair Bentwood Stamped AustriaBy ThonetLocated in Chula Vista, CAVintage Thonet Project Cafe Dining Chair Stamped AUSTRIA. Bentwood Plywood 33.5 tall x 18 w x 20.25 d Seat 17.5 Original fair vintage condition unrestored. Plywood seat replaced the original cane...Category
Vintage 1930s Austrian Art Deco Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBentwood, Plywood
- Classic Set 6 Thonet No. 18 Bentwood Bistro Dining ChairsBy ThonetLocated in Buffalo, NYClassic set 6 Thonet Bentwood Dining /Bistro chairs, model # 18.Labeled Made in Czechoslovakia.Nuce clean matched set, Retains original warm honey blonde fini...Category
Vintage 1940s Czech Vienna Secession Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBentwood
- Vintage Metal Thonet Bentwood Austrian Style Bistro Dining Chairs, Set of 4Located in Philadelphia, PAVintage Metal Thonet Bentwood Austrian style Bistro dining chairs - set of 4. Item features metal frames, "bentwood" style, very rare model, upholstered seats, very nice vintage set,...Category
Late 20th Century North American Art Nouveau Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsMetal
- Set of Four Bentwood Dining Chairs Attributed to ThonetBy ThonetLocated in Vienna, ATBentwood chairs as Thonet No 20. New canning on all chairs. Four pieces available Delivery time 3-4 weeks.Category
Antique Early 1900s Czech Vienna Secession Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBeech, Bentwood, Cane
- Set of Four Thonet Bentwood Cafe Dining Chairs RomaniaBy ThonetLocated in Port Jervis, NYSet of 4 very sturdy and tight bentwood sweetheart chairs by Thonet and crafted in Romania. Brown vinyl seat seat covering that can be changed easi...Category
Vintage 1960s Romanian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBeech, Naugahyde
- Early Michael Thonet N.17 Bistro Dining Armchairs in Bentwood and Cane - AustriaBy Michael Thonet, ThonetLocated in Pijnacker, Zuid-HollandSet of 4 No. 17 dining arm chairs in bentwood and cane 'long john' chairs and table designed by Michael Thonet. Originally designed in the 1860s and produced by Thonet in the 20th ce...Category
Antique 1860s Austrian Rococo Revival Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsCane, Bentwood