Rolex Dynasty

The Liberty of London department store, located in the fashionable west end of London in the United Kingdom, has been selling luxury items since 1875. From leather footstools in the shape of a hippo to elegantly hand-carved Moroccan coffee tables, there’s something to please every discerning collector. And while it became a reputable retailer over time, the original Liberty & Co. was a pivotal force in the development of the Aesthetic, Art Nouveau and the Arts and Crafts movements. As the champion of eclectic design throughout the centuries, Liberty continues to collaborate with designers to produce covetable interior fashion and accessories.

Arthur Liberty was born in 1843 in Buckinghamshire, England. His father, a draper, encouraged him to apprentice as a draper at age 16. Instead, he took an offer to work at Farmer and Rogers, a women’s fashion store. After ten years, he decided to strike out on his own. In 1875 he borrowed money from his father-in-law and leased a small store on the very prominent Regent Street, naming it the East India House.

Liberty’s store was very eclectic. It served as an emporium for Eastern imports, with a wildly varied collection of ornaments, fabrics and objects d’art — including imported antiques — on offer. In London, there was already a demand for and an interest in imported goods from India and elsewhere, so his business concept was an immediate success. He repaid his loan in less than two years and continually expanded by buying up all the buildings on his side of the street. His company was so successful that even the original Victoria and Albert Museum purchased Eastern textiles for its collection from his store.

By 1890, the firm came to be known as Liberty & Company. Liberty died in 1917, but the business continued to thrive. In 1924, the current iteration — and now world-famous — of the store was constructed. It was built in the Tudor Revival style and the structure's frame was made of wood salvaged from two British warships. In the 1950s and '60s, the store, now known as Liberty’s, helped spark the counterculture youth movements of the era as beatniks and hippies purchased fabrics and furnishings from this iconic store. 

On 1stDibs, find antique Liberty of London tables, decorative objects, seating and more.

From Japanese handmade earthenware pottery, originating circa 14,500 B.C. and adorned with elaborate corded patterns known as jōmon, to natural elm case pieces and storage cabinets built in Qing dynasty–era China to mid-century Thai rice-paper charcoal rubbings, antique and vintage Asian art and furniture make for wonderful additions to all kinds of contemporary interiors.

Eastern elements elevate any home’s decor. Introduce zen sensibility to your living room, dining room and bedroom with the neutral color palettes and the natural materials such as rattan, bamboo and elm that we typically associate with traditional Asian furniture. Decorative handwoven embroideries and textiles originating from India and elsewhere on the continent, which can be draped over a bed or sofa or used as a wall hanging, can be as practical as they are functional, just as you wouldn’t seek out Japanese room-divider screens — often decorated with paintings but constructed to be lightweight and mobile — merely for privacy.

With everything from blanket chests to lighting fixtures to sculptures and carvings, it’s easy to tastefully bring serenity to your living space by looking to the treasures for which the East has long been known.

For British-born furniture designer Andrianna Shamaris, the Japanese concept of beauty in imperfection isn’t limited to her Wabi Sabi collection. She embraces it in her New York City apartment as well. In the living area, for instance, she retained the fireplace’s original black marble while swathing its frame and the rest of the room in bright white.

“We left the fireplace very clean and wabi-sabi, so that it blended into the wall,” says Shamaris, who further appointed the space with a hand-carved antique daybed whose plush pillows are upholstered in antique textiles from the Indonesian island of Sumba.

In the growing antique and vintage Asian art and furniture collection on 1stDibs, find ceramics from China, antiquities from Cambodia and a vast range of tables, seating, dining chairs and other items from Japan, India and other countries.