Classical Greek More Lighting
There is rare surviving furniture from ancient Greece, yet this classical style has informed design for centuries. Interiors of houses in antiquity were minimal, with much of a room’s color coming from frescoes on the walls and mosaics on the floors. Classical Greek furniture was sparing but finely crafted and influenced by Egyptian furniture design through Mediterranean trade.
Furnishings of the period were usually made from local wood like cypress, cedar, oak and willow from ancient Greece’s plentiful forests, although some pieces were carved from marble, such as a 300–200 B.C. throne with lion legs and a curved back now at the Getty Villa. Comfort and clean lines characterized designs during the Classical era, the symmetry and thoughtful proportions reflecting the architecture of Greek temples.
Some pieces of ancient Greek furniture were simple, rectangular platforms like the klinē, a multipurpose ancestor of today’s couches or daybeds that held cushions stuffed with wool, dry grass or down. These structures were used for both sleeping and dining, which wealthy Greeks did while reclining. At night, oil lamps illuminated rooms that frequently surrounded a garden courtyard.
Most of what scholars have learned about Greek furniture design owes to its representations in art like vases and stelae. The portable diphros stool, with its backless design and four turned legs, was one of the more common types of seating in daily Greek life — it appears as such for the gods on the Parthenon frieze. Stools without backs have been found in early Roman tombs, while benches were also common Greek seating furniture created for use in theaters. In houses of the Hellenistic period, benches seemingly functioned as tables, too.
Some designs evolved through adaptations by the Romans, including the klismos chair. After prominent archaeological excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum, the klismos chair — with its four saber legs and the elegant curves that define its back — was a source of inspiration for aesthetics in eras ranging from 18th-century neoclassicism to 20th-century Art Deco.
Find a collection of Classical Greek decorative objects, wall decorations and building and garden elements on 1stDibs.
Mid-19th Century Unknown Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Enamel
20th Century Italian Classical Greek More Lighting
Terracotta
Early 19th Century French Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Ormolu
1940s American Vintage Classical Greek More Lighting
Glass, Wood
19th Century Italian Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Wood
2010s Italian Classical Greek More Lighting
Stainless Steel
20th Century English Classical Greek More Lighting
Silver Plate
Mid-19th Century Chinese Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Spanish Classical Greek More Lighting
Ceramic, Porcelain, Terracotta
1870s English Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Sterling Silver
Early 20th Century Chinese Classical Greek More Lighting
Terracotta
Late 20th Century British Classical Greek More Lighting
Crystal
19th Century French Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Bronze
Early 19th Century European Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Porcelain
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Marble
Mid-20th Century American Classical Greek More Lighting
Brass
![BRASS STARBURST Design Table Lamps [PAIR]](https://a.1stdibscdn.com/archivesE/upload/1121189/f_85260531505719645629/8526053_master.jpg?width=240 "starburst table lamps")
Mid-20th Century North American Classical Greek More Lighting
Carrara Marble, Metal, Brass
Early 20th Century French Classical Greek More Lighting
Bronze
Mid-20th Century Italian Classical Greek More Lighting
Glass, Giltwood
Late 19th Century American Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Marble, Metal, Bronze, Wire
1990s Unknown Classical Greek More Lighting
Rock Crystal
Late 19th Century French Antique Classical Greek More Lighting
Marble, Bronze
1970s Italian Vintage Classical Greek More Lighting
Wood
