Maison Freres Mercier Coffee

Furniture and decor created in the Louis XV and Louis XVI styles may have been Maison Mercier Frères’s specialty, but the leading 19th-century firm also earned the patronage of European courts and of Eastern royalty for its elegant custom furniture. In subsequent decades, the Maison also explored the Art Nouveau and Art Deco styles, retaining its wealthy clientele and gaining loyalty among newcomers to the historic manufacturer.

Providing the Spanish crown, the Persian royal family and much of Europe’s royalty with the highest quality furniture was a main source of revenue for Maison Mercier Frères throughout the 19th century. Founded by Claude Mercier, Maison Mercier Frères participated in major French exhibitions, including the 1844 and 1849 Exposition des produits de l’industrie française and the Universal Expositions in 1867 and 1900. 

While it primarily operated out of a manufacturing location on rue Saint-Antoine in Paris, Maison Mercier Frères also established a joint factory in Lyon in 1913 called Mercier & Chaleyssin. A later branch opened in Buenos Aires, Argentina, in 1914, with another on 59th Street in New York City in 1927. Despite its popularity, a well-placed store on the Champs-Élysées and worldwide branches, the company closed in 1985, leaving behind a treasure trove of expertly made vintage and antique furniture.

On 1stDibs, find a collection of Maison Mercier Frères tables, case pieces, decorative objects and more.

As a practical focal point in your living area, antique and vintage coffee tables and cocktail tables are an invaluable addition to any interior.

Low tables that were initially used as tea tables or coffee tables have been around since at least the mid- to late-1800s. Early coffee tables surfaced in Victorian-era England, likely influenced by the use of tea tables in Japanese tea gardens. In the United States, furniture makers worked to introduce low, long tables into their offerings as the popularity of coffee and “coffee breaks” took hold during the late 19th century and early 20th century.

It didn’t take long for coffee tables and cocktail tables to become a design staple and for consumers to recognize their role in entertaining no matter what beverages were being served. Originally, these tables were as simple as they are practical — as high as your sofa and made primarily of wood. In recent years, however, metal, glass and plastics have become popular in coffee tables and cocktail tables, and design hasn’t been restricted to the conventional low profile, either.

Visionary craftspeople such as Paul Evans introduced bold, geometric designs that challenge the traditional idea of what a coffee table can be. The elongated rectangles and wide boxy forms of Evans’s desirable Cityscape coffee table, for example, will meet your needs but undoubtedly prove imposing in your living space.

If you’re shopping for an older coffee table to bring into your home — be it an antique Georgian-style coffee table made of mahogany or walnut with decorative inlays or a classic square mid-century modern piece comprised of rosewood designed by the likes of Ettore Sottsass — there are a few things you should keep in mind.

Both the table itself and what you put on it should align with the overall design of the room, not just by what you think looks fashionable in isolation. According to interior designer Tamara Eaton, the material of your vintage coffee table is something you need to consider. “With a glass coffee table, you also have to think about the surface underneath, like the rug or floor,” she says. “With wood and stone tables, you think about what’s on top.”

Find the perfect centerpiece for any room, no matter what your personal furniture style on 1stDibs. Browse a vast selection of antique, new and vintage coffee table and cocktail tables today.