Biedermeier Side Tables
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.
1840s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Ash, Lacquer, Wood
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Mahogany
1820s French Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Mahogany, Lacquer
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Mahogany
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Wood, Lacquer, Mahogany
1810s German Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Cherry
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Birdseye Maple
20th Century American Biedermeier Side Tables
Marble
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Cherry
20th Century German Biedermeier Side Tables
Maple
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Wood
1830s European Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Mahogany
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Iron
Mid-19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Elm, Walnut, Burl
20th Century Biedermeier Side Tables
Wood, Maple, Pine
19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Birch
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Wood, Glass
19th Century Russian Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Fruitwood, Birch
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Wood, Walnut, Lacquer, Maple, Spruce
1810s Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Cherry
19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Marble
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Tables
Brass