Glass Salad Set
Antique Late 19th Century American Other Glass
Cut Glass
Mid-20th Century American Art Nouveau Glass
Cut Glass
Vintage 1950s American Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1940s American Serving Bowls
Wood
Antique 1870s American Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver, Enamel
Vintage 1940s American Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1970s American Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1950s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Antique 1880s American Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Tableware
Glass
20th Century French Hollywood Regency Dinner Plates
Glass
Early 20th Century German Biedermeier Serving Pieces
Silver
Early 20th Century North American American Classical Sheffield and Silve...
Silver Plate
Early 20th Century Canadian Sterling Silver
Silver
Early 20th Century Canadian Sterling Silver
Silver
Early 20th Century Canadian Art Nouveau Sterling Silver
Silver
20th Century Danish Art Deco Sterling Silver
Vintage 1980s Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Early 20th Century Italian Serving Pieces
Metal
Antique Early 19th Century American Glass
Glass, Cut Glass
20th Century European Art Nouveau Tableware
Sterling Silver
Mid-20th Century North American Baroque Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver, Enamel
Vintage 1970s German Tableware
Porcelain
20th Century Danish Art Deco Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1960s Austrian Tableware
Stainless Steel
Vintage 1970s American American Classical Dinner Plates
Porcelain
20th Century Danish Art Deco Tableware
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Serving Bowls
Teak
20th Century Danish Modern Tableware
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1970s German American Classical Dinner Plates
Porcelain
Mid-20th Century Danish Serving Pieces
Sterling Silver
Mid-20th Century French Dinner Plates
Ceramic
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Sheffield and Silverplate
Silver Plate
Late 20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Tableware
Stainless Steel
20th Century Danish Art Deco Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1930s Danish Art Deco Sterling Silver
20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver, Stainless Steel
Vintage 1910s Danish Tableware
Silver, Stainless Steel
Mid-20th Century German Belle Époque Porcelain
Porcelain
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Serving Bowls
Teak
21st Century and Contemporary Danish Modern Serving Pieces
Stainless Steel
20th Century Danish Art Nouveau Tableware
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1920s Danish Tableware
Silver
Early 20th Century German Country Serving Pieces
Silver
20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Tableware
Silver
Vintage 1950s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Serving Pieces
Sterling Silver
Mid-20th Century Serving Pieces
Sterling Silver
20th Century American Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1970s French Mid-Century Modern Dinner Plates
Porcelain
2010s Organic Modern Dinner Plates
Ceramic
20th Century American Rococo Sterling Silver
Sterling Silver
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Barware
Steel, Stainless Steel
Vintage 1960s Mid-Century Modern Platters and Serveware
Wood
Vintage 1970s Norwegian Mid-Century Modern Tableware
Brass, Pewter
Antique 1880s French Napoleon III Tableware
Metal, Silver
Antique 19th Century English Chinese Export Dinner Plates
Porcelain
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Tableware
Porcelain
Early 20th Century Danish Art Deco Tableware
Sterling Silver, Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Turkish Tableware
Porcelain
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Glass Salad Set For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Glass Salad Set?
Finding the Right tableware for You
While it isn’t always top of mind for some, antique and vintage tableware can enhance even the most informal meal. It has been an intimate part of how we’ve interacted with our food for millennia.
Tableware has played a basic but important role in everyday life. Ancient Egyptians used spoons (which are classified as flatware) made of ivory and wood, while Greeks and Romans, who gathered for banquets involving big meals and entertainment, ate with forks and knives. At the beginning of the 17th century, however, forks were still uncommon in American homes. Over time, tableware has thankfully evolved and today includes increasingly valuable implements.
Tableware refers to the tools people use to set the table, including serving pieces, dinner plates and more. It encompasses everything from the intricate and elaborate to the austere and functional, yet are all what industrial product designer Jasper Morrison might call “Super Normal” — anonymous objects that are too useful to be considered banal.
There are four general categories of tableware — serveware, dinnerware, drinkware and, lastly, flatware, which is commonly referred to as silverware or cutlery. Serveware includes serving bowls, platters, gravy boats, casserole pans and ladles. Most tableware is practical, but it can also be decorative. And decorative objects count as tableware too. Even though they don’t fit squarely into one of the four categories, vases, statues and floral arrangements are traditional centerpieces.
Drinkware appropriately refers to the vessels we use for our beverages — mugs, cups and glasses. There is a good deal of variety that falls under this broad term. For example, your cheerful home bar or mid-century modern bar cart might be outfitted with a full range of vintage barware, which might include pilsner glasses and tumblers. Specialty cocktails are often served in these custom glasses, but they’re still a type of drinkware.
Every meal should be special — even if you’re using earthenware or stoneware for a casual lunch — but perhaps you’re hosting a dinner party to mark a specific event. The right high-quality tableware can bring a touch of luxury to your cuisine. Young couples, for example, traditionally add “fine china,” or porcelain, to their wedding registry as a commemoration of their union and likely wouldn’t turn down exquisite silver made by Tiffany & Co. or Georg Jensen.
It’s important to remember, however, that when you’re setting the dining room table to have fun with it. Just as you might mix and match your dining chairs, don’t be afraid to mix new and old or high and low with your tableware. On 1stDibs, find an extraordinary range of vintage and antique tableware to help elevate your meal as well as the mood and atmosphere of your entire dining room.
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