Original 1940 Thonet Bentwood Dining Chairs, Set of Eight
View Similar Items
Original 1940 Thonet Bentwood Dining Chairs, Set of Eight
About the Item
- Creator:Thonet (Manufacturer)
- Dimensions:Height: 30.5 in (77.47 cm)Width: 15 in (38.1 cm)Depth: 19 in (48.26 cm)Seat Height: 17 in (43.18 cm)
- Sold As:Set of 8
- Style:Mid-Century Modern (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:circa 1940s
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor fading.
- Seller Location:Las Vegas, NV
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU119521908762
Thonet
For more than 180 years, Thonet — or Gebrüder Thonet — has produced elegant and durable tables and cabinets as well as chairs, stools and other seating that wholly blur the lines between art and design. Widely known as a trailblazer in the use of bentwood in furniture, the European manufacturer has reimagined the places in which we gather.
Noted for his skill in parquetry, German-Austrian company founder Michael Thonet received an invitation from Austrian Chancellor Prince Metternich to contribute Neo-Rococo interiors to the Liechtenstein City Palace in Vienna. The Boppard-born Thonet had honed his carpentry skills in his father’s workshop, where he carried out experiments with plywood and modified the Biedermeier chairs that populated the studio.
Thonet’s work for the chancellor raised his profile, and the cabinetmaker gained international recognition, including at London’s Great Exhibition of 1851, which featured works created by members of the Arts and Crafts movement as well as industrial products of the day. Thonet showed a range of furniture at the fair and won the bronze medal for his bentwood chairs. He incorporated his family’s company, the Thonet Brothers, with his sons in 1853.
Bentwood furniture dates as far back as the Middle Ages, but it is the 19th-century cabinetmaker Thonet who is most often associated with this now-classic technique. Thonet in 1856 patented a method for bending solid wood through the use of steam, and from there, the bentwood look skyrocketed to furniture fame. The works of renowned mid-century modern designers such as Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, and Charles and Ray Eames that put this technological advancement to use would not be as extensive or celebrated were it not for the efforts of the pioneering Thonet.
Considered the world’s oldest mass-produced chair, Michael Thonet’s ubiquitous Chair No. 14 demonstrated that his patented bentwood technology made it possible to efficiently produce furniture on an industrial scale. Now known as the 214, it won the German Sustainability Award Design for 2021, a recognition of the company’s commitment to environmentally responsible production.
Often called the Coffee House chair — the company’s first substantial order was for a Viennese coffeehouse — the No. 14 remains an icon. Thonet originally designed the chair in 1859, and it is considered the starting point for modern furniture.
The bentwood process opened doors — there were investments in machinery and new industrial processes, and the business began mass-producing furniture. By the end of the 1850s, there were additional Thonet workshops in Eastern Europe and hundreds of employees. Michael Thonet’s reputation attracted the attention of notable architects including Otto Wagner, Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.
The No. 14 was followed by the No. 18, or the Bistro chair, in 1867, and the 209, or the Architect’s chair, of which Le Corbusier was a fan. (The influential Swiss-French architect and designer used Thonet furniture in his Pavillon de l’Esprit Nouveau at the 1925 International Exposition of Decorative Arts in Paris.)
Thonet’s chair designs also appeared in artwork by Toulouse-Lautrec, John Sloan and Henri Matisse in his Interior with a Violin Case. The noteworthy Thonet rocking chair remains a marvel of construction — in the middle of the 19th century, Michael produced a series of rockers in which the different curved parts were integrated into fluid, sinuous wholes. Thanks to Thonet, the humble rocker acquired something unexpected: style. It was captured in the paintings of Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and James Tissot.
Thonet is currently split into global divisions. Thonet Industries U.S.A. was acquired in 1987 by Shelby Williams and joined the CF Group in 1999, while the Thonet brand in Germany is owned by Thonet GmbH.
Find a collection of antique Thonet furniture on 1stDibs.
- Set of Six Biedermeier Era Style Dining ChairsBy Baptistin SpadeLocated in Las Vegas, NVA set of six Biedermeier style dining chairs with elegant curved lines and saber legs. Gorgeous bird’s-eye Maple veneer on curved seat back. These are HIGH quality reproduction seats(circa 1980 or so) made of fine hardwood and upholstered in a period style upholstery. Very comfortable and solid seats. Each chair is solid with original glossy wood...Category
Mid-20th Century Biedermeier Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBirdseye Maple, Wood
$3,200 / set - Original 1960's Herman Miller Charles & Ray Eames Bikini Wire Chairs set of 4By Charles and Ray EamesLocated in Las Vegas, NVSet of 4 Herman Miller "Bikini" chairs in factory white with aluminum bases and dark green vinyl cover. Circa early 1960's. Well loved and cared for. One has been reweld repaired and...Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsAluminum, Iron
- Antique Pennsylvania Shaker Style Tall Ladderback & Rush Dining Chair SetLocated in Las Vegas, NVSet of 4 solid Oak ladderback Shaker era style chairs. We believe these to be early 1900s version. Woven rush seating have nice warm aged patina but no signs of use. These are al...Category
Early 20th Century Shaker Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsRush, Oak
- Mid-Century Danish Modern Sculptural Teak Dining Chairs 6By Johannes AndersenLocated in Las Vegas, NVSet of 6 elegant and sophisticated Teak dining chairs from Denmark, circa 1958. They are all in very good original condition with no damage nor repairs.Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Teak
- 8 Danish Modern Niels Otto Møller Sculpted Rosewood Dining Arm ChairsBy Niels Otto MøllerLocated in Las Vegas, NVSet of eight exotic rosewood and vinyl armchairs designed by Niels Otto Møller for T.L. Moller of Denmark, chair model #65. Gorgeous, elegant chairs with sleek lines and amazing wood...Category
Vintage 1960s Danish Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsLeather, Rosewood
- set of 10 Vintage Brno Chairs designed by Mies Van Der RoheBy Ludwig Mies van der RoheLocated in Las Vegas, NVClean set of 10 tubular chrome steel cantilevered Brno chairs designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe. Possibly Knoll however manufacturers labels were not present when we purchased. Extremely nice quality with deep mirror...Category
Vintage 1970s American Bauhaus Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsChrome, Steel
- Midcentury Set of 5 Thonet High Back Bentwood Dining ChairsBy ThonetLocated in Saarbruecken, DESet of 5 !!!!! Thonet high back bentwood beech chairs. Solid and stabile. Signed. Fabric can be changed easily.Category
Vintage 1980s German Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBentwood
- Set of Four Bentwood Dining Chairs Attributed to ThonetBy ThonetLocated in Vienna, ATBentwood chairs as Thonet No 20. New canning on all chairs. Four pieces available Delivery time 3-4 weeks.Category
Antique Early 1900s Czech Vienna Secession Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBeech, Bentwood, Cane
- Set of Four Thonet Bentwood Cafe Dining Chairs RomaniaBy ThonetLocated in Port Jervis, NYSet of 4 very sturdy and tight bentwood sweetheart chairs by Thonet and crafted in Romania. Brown vinyl seat seat covering that can be changed easi...Category
Vintage 1960s Romanian Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsBeech, Naugahyde
- Midcentury Thonet N. 17 high back bentwood Dining Chairs Set of 6By Thonet, Michael ThonetLocated in BROOKLYN, NYDistinctive set of six no. 17 bentwood and cane 'long john' chairs designed by Michael Thonet. Originally designed in the 1860s and produced by Thonet in the 20th century by multipl...Category
20th Century Austrian Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsCane, Bentwood
- Classic Set of 6 Bentwood Cafe Dining Chairs, Attributed to ThonetBy ThonetLocated in Buffalo, NYClassic set of 6 bentwood cafe dining chairs attributed to Thonet, recently reupholstered in a leopard print fabric, set consists of 4 matching chair...Category
Vintage 1930s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsFabric, Bentwood
- Le Corbusier for Thonet Mid Century Bentwood Dining Chairs, Set of 6By Le Corbusier, ThonetLocated in Countryside, ILLe Corbusier for Thonet mid century bentwood dining chairs - Set of 6 Each chair measures: 21 wide x 22 deep x 31 high, with a seat height of 19 i...Category
Vintage 1970s American Mid-Century Modern Dining Room Chairs
MaterialsUpholstery, Bentwood