Biedermeier Armchairs
The authentic Biedermeier furniture on 1stDibs is representative of the first modern European decorative style not dictated by the tastes of the aristocracy. Following the Napoleonic wars, a growing, wealthy urban middle class in the German-speaking states of Central Europe began to demand rights and privileges once granted only to nobles. To avoid trouble, the upwardly striving confined their political discussions to one another’s homes. And so the salon was born.
Cabinetmakers in cities such as Vienna, Berlin and Mainz began to offer goods that reflected the tastes and needs of the new class. The makers of Biedermeier chairs, tables and other furniture used little or no gilding, silver hardware or other lavish ornament. Ebonized trims are common on Biedermeier cabinetry, and neoclassical elements — lyre-shaped chair splats, carved scrollwork, table supports shaped like Greek columns. But the strongest aesthetic statement came from the wood — richly-grained, honey-colored, often book-matched veneers of walnut and fruitwood.
There are two iconic Biedermeier furniture forms, both made to outfit rooms designed for conversation. One is the sofa, deeply upholstered with a strong, architectural wooden frame. The second is the circular pedestal table, which stood at the center of the room, offering a surface on which to place coffee and cake services; or to roll out a map, or sketch out ideas on paper.
“Biedermeier” was originally a derogatory term — it derives from the pen names of two German magazine writers who mocked bourgeois manners. Looking at the elegant and refined antique, new and vintage Biedermeier furniture offered on 1stDibs, that is now an amusing irony.
1850s Swedish Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Birch
Early 1900s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Birch
1860s Swedish Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Walnut
1830s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood, Oak, Walnut, Spruce
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cherry
1980s Swedish Vintage Biedermeier Armchairs
Enamel, Iron
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cherry
Early 19th Century Czech Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood, Oak, Walnut, Spruce
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Leather
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cherry
1820s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood, Cherry, Oak
19th Century Unknown Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fruitwood
Mid-20th Century Hungarian Biedermeier Armchairs
Wood
19th Century Unknown Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Ash, Fruitwood
Early 1900s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Velvet, Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Upholstery, Walnut
1910s Swedish Vintage Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Birch
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Walnut
Late 20th Century Swedish Biedermeier Armchairs
Birch
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Mahogany, Upholstery, Cotton
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Upholstery, Walnut
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Linen, Upholstery, Walnut
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 20th Century Austrian Biedermeier Armchairs
Beech
Mid-19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Birch
20th Century Austrian Biedermeier Armchairs
Upholstery, Fruitwood
Early 19th Century Baltic Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Mahogany, Velvet, Upholstery
Mid-19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Mahogany, Maple
1850s French Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Wood, Maple, Lacquer, Cherry, Satinwood
1850s French Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Wood, Lacquer, Maple, Walnut
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cherry
20th Century Biedermeier Armchairs
Metal
1840s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Silk, Wood
18th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Wood, Giltwood
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Velvet, Walnut, Spruce
Early 20th Century German Biedermeier Armchairs
Maple, Silk
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Velvet, Mahogany
19th Century Russian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Mahogany
Early 19th Century Danish Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Wood
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cherry
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cherry
1830s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Upholstery, Walnut
1940s Spanish Vintage Biedermeier Armchairs
Walnut, Wood
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cherry
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Textile, Cherry
Early 19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Walnut
1970s American Vintage Biedermeier Armchairs
Cotton, Wood
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Walnut
1830s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Upholstery, Walnut, Paint
Late 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cane, Wood
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Ash
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Upholstery, Cherry, Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Walnut, Upholstery
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Cherry
20th Century Swedish Biedermeier Armchairs
Fabric, Birch, Upholstery, Wood
1840s German Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Yew
1830s Antique Biedermeier Armchairs
Walnut