Italian 18th Century Writing Desk
Located in Round Top, TX
An outstanding 18th century Louis XIV Auctioneer’s Desk from Lombardy, Italy. Beautifully constructed from walnut and olive wood veneer with three drawers in an altar-like form. Ex...
Olive, Walnut
French Original Black Painted Portable 18th Century Writing Desk
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
An original black painted portable desk from the end of the 18th century. With owner initials, the desk has a French hand-written address on the inside. Desk is with the original pai...
Wood
$3,996Sale Price|42% Off
18th century Italian Paint Decorated Writing Desk with Drawer Circa 1760s
Located in Swedesboro, NJ
Experience the charm and elegance of Old World craftsmanship with this 18th Century Italian Paint Decorated Writing Desk, dating circa 1760s.
Walnut, Pine
Swedish 18th Century Writing Desk Commode with Original Brass Hardware, c.1760
Located in Atlanta, GA
A Swedish writing desk commode dating to circa 1760, crafted in pine and finished in a richly aged dark paint with exceptional surface character and patina accumulated over centuries.
Wood
Louis XVI Desk, Germany 1780, cherry veneer
Located in Leimen, DE
This elegant 18th-century writing desk offers five functional drawers and is in very good refinished condition, preserving the beauty and craftsmanship of the period.
Cherry
Louis XVI writing desk in walnut. 18th century
Located in Atlanta, GA
A refined Louis XVI period writing desk from the 18th century, crafted in warm walnut with understated brass trim.
Brass
Gorgeous 18th Century Tin Marquetry Writing Desk/ Cabinet
Located in Brussels, BE
18th century tin marquetry writing desk.
Tin
Italian Parquetry Inlaid Writing Table Desk, 18th Century
Located in San Francisco, CA
An exceptional parquetry inlaid writing table with Neoclassical designs, inlay with satinwood, black walnut, and fruitwood. Having a single center drawer, and supported on tapering l...
Fruitwood, Satinwood, Walnut
$24,444Sale Price|20% Off
18th Century, French Louis XV Wood Flap Writing Desk
Located in IT
18th Century, Franch Louis XV Wood Flap Writing Desk Measures: cm H 94 x W 83,5 x D 46; D with the open panel 82 cm, H of the desk top 69,5 cm This elegant desk was made in France ...
Bronze
French 18th Century Louis XV Bureau Plat, Writing Desk
Located in Worpswede / Bremen, DE
An imposing Louis XV ebonized writing table with finely chased gilt bronze mounts. The stepped moulded rectangular top inset with the original gilt-tooled leather above three frieze ...
Bronze
18th Century Swedish Painted Center Table ~ Writing Desk
Located in Dallas, TX
18th Century Swedish Painted Center Table ~ Writing Desk This selection embodies the quiet refinement and understated elegance of Scandinavian neoclassical design.
Oak, Paint
MID-18th CENTURY LOUIS XV INLAY WRITING DESK
Located in Firenze, FI
Refined carved solid walnut writing desk, embellished with walnut veneer and cherry wood inlays.
Bronze
$2,853Sale Price|30% Off
Antique Georgian 18th Century Satin Walnut Bureau Desk Writing Table Elegant
Located in Wisbech, England
Antique Georgian 18th Century Satin Walnut Bureau Desk Writing Table – a rare and exquisite piece featuring veneer on oak and elm construction.
Wood
Fine 18th Century French Games Table with removable Leathertop Writing Desk
Located in Richmond, VA
Fine 18th century French walnut games table and leathertop writing desk.
Leather, Baize, Walnut
18th Century Italian Neoclassical Handcrafted Walnut Writing Desk
Located in Viterbo, VT
Neoclassical writing desk handmade in Italy in the late 1700s using walnut and peg construction. The writing desk features three overlay drawers with ogee edges and each drawer front...
Walnut
Swedish Gustavian Writing Desk, Late 18th Century, Late 1700s
Located in New York, NY
A Swedish late Gustavian writing desk, late 18th century in excellent antique condition.
Brass
Louis XVI Writing Desk in Walnut, Cherrywood, and Marquetry, Italy, 18th Century
Located in Atlanta, GA
An elegant Louis XVI period writing desk, crafted in northern Italy (Lombardy region) during the 18th century.
Cherry, Walnut
$1,900Sale Price|30% Off
High-Quality Antique Oak Writing Table - Early 18th Century Desk Side Dressing
Located in Wisbech, England
Introducing an antique quality early 18th Century oak writing table, versatile as a desk or dressing table, boasting a classical Early Georgian design.
Oak
Classic French 18th Century Empire Walnut Kneehole Writing Desk
Located in Hopewell, NJ
Found near Paris, France, we purchased this museum quality 18th century Empire style desk for its impeccable quality and style. Made predominantly from walnut and featuring Empiric s...
Walnut
18 th Century French Louis XIII Carved Walnut Lectern Desk on Stand
Located in Dallas, TX
The original iron lock plate remains intact, adding authenticity and character. This charming 18th-century writing cabinet is in excellent condition commensurate with age and use, an...
Walnut
18th Century, Gentleman's Writing Desk and Games Table
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Wonderful, circa 1780, hand carved, petite writing desk inset with game chess and backgammon game boards. The top featuring its original, inset marble. The whole on tapered legs term...
Marble, Bronze
$1,820Sale Price|35% Off
18th Century George II Walnut Writing Table
Located in Bradenton, FL
George II walnut writing table, Mid-18th Century, the molded top having a tooled green leather inset writing panel, fitted with a genuine and false frieze drawer to either side, rais...
Walnut, Leather
SECOND HALF OF THE 18th CENTURY LOUIS XVI CHERRY WRITING DESK
Located in Firenze, FI
Refined writing desk entirely veneered in cherry, embellished with elegant ebony inlays.
Bronze
18th Century French Louis XVI Walnut Writing Table or Desk, Circa 1780
Located in San Francisco, CA
A Louis XVI carved walnut writing table with a tooled inset brown leather top, standing on elegant cabriole legs ending on cloven hoof feet. Having single center drawer with a decora...
Leather, Walnut
18th Century Neoclassical Desk, Austria
Located in New York, NY
An elegant Neoclassical desk featuring one drawer and a sliding tabletop. The piece is beautifully veneered and hand-polished. It stands on tall tapered square legs, accented with br...
Bronze
18th Century Flap Writing Desk, Walnut, Louis XIII Style, Italy
Located in Sant'Arsenio, Campania
18th century flap writing desk Object: Desk with flap Period: eighteenth century Origin: Italy Description: The piece of furniture is a rare example of a 17th/18th centu...
Walnut
18th Century French Cherrywood 'Bureau de Pente' Slant Top Writing Desk
Located in Dallas, TX
A graceful and functional bureau de pente from the late 18th century, this cherrywood slant top writing desk would make the perfect addition to any office, library, or study.
Brass
18th Century Louis XV Provincial Writing / Occasional Table
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
Louis XV provincial walnut writing / occasional table, 18th century. With an overhanging 3 board top with molded borders, frieze with drawer and scalloped apron, resting on cabriole ...
Walnut
18th Century Veneered and Inlaid Wood Italian Louis XV Writing Desk
Located in IT
The elegant antique north Italian (Genoa) Louis XV period writing desk, called also bureau plat, is made of veneered and inlaid woods. It have a beautiful wavy line with slender but ...
Bronze
18th Century Provencal Hand Carved Walnut Wood Antique Writing Desk Side Table
Located in West Hollywood, CA
18th Century Provencal Hand Carved Walnut Wood Antique Writing Desk Side Table.
Metal
$12,400Sale Price|20% Off
Late 18th Century Small Lady's Mahogany Writing Desk with Ink Pot & Well
Located in Shrewsbury, GB
A superb George III lady's mahogany writing desk with hidden ink pots and a drawer, circa 1790. The desk stands on four reeded legs and on original brass castors. An unusual feature ...
Brass
18th Century Spanish Louis XIII Carved Walnut Writing Table Desk with Drawers
Located in Dallas, TX
Crafted in Spain circa 1760, this impressive antique writing table showcases the strength and refined craftsmanship characteristic of the Louis XIII period. The rectangular table sta...
Walnut
Spanish, late Baroque, 18th Century Desk or Writing Table or console table
Located in Troy, NY
Rustic, Spanish late Baroque Writing Table, made of Chestnut, with a wonderful deep warm patina and restrained decoration to the front drawer panels. The table, with a one-plank top,...
Wrought Iron
18th century Louis XVI Writing Desk, cherry veneer, South Germany
Located in Belmont, MA
Rare Louis XVI writing desk, South German 1780, exquisite cherry and plum wood veneer on front back, sides and top. The writing top is framed by an open work brass bordering. In very...
Cherry
18th Century French Walnut Writing Table
Located in High Point, NC
18th century walnut writing table with a banded and beveled edge around the top, following down to a simple apron containing a single drawer in the front and supported on hand turned...
Walnut
Continental 18th Century Bombay Slant Front Desk
Located in Bridgeport, CT
An 18th century Bombay form slant front desk that opens to reveal an inlaid central door with working key that reveals a compartment with a small drawer.
Wood
18th Century George II Writing Bureau
Located in Dublin 8, IE
18th Century George II mahogany ladies writing bureau topped by brass pierced gallery. The sloped fall front enclosing six drawers above a shaped frieze incorporating scrolls flanki...
Mahogany
18th Century Country Side Writing Table
Located in Madrid, ES
A nice French country writing table, Louis XVI period, in solid oak, with a long drawer and drawer handle in bronze, the legs finished in sabot.
Bronze
$1,900Sale Price|30% Off
Fine Quality Antique Mahogany Writing Table - Late 18th Century Dressing
Located in Wisbech, England
Georgian Cuban Mahogany Writing Table - Late 18th Century Desk Side Dressing.
Wood
18th c. Walnut Writing Table
Located in New Orleans, LA
Walnut Writing Table
Walnut
A Blue Rococo 18th Century Writing Table With Drawer, Finland
Located in Helsinki, FI
A beautiful 18th Rococo writing table in absolutely original condition. The table features a single drawer and a beautiful vintage patina with the original blue colour. The condition...
Pine
$1,993Sale Price|34% Off
French 18th Century Poplar & Oak Writing Table Louis XV Period
Located in Labrit, Landes
Writing table or desk made of poplar in the french 18th century, Louis XV period.
Oak, Poplar
18th Century Swedish Gustavian Writing Table
Located in Kramfors, SE
Gustavian table from northern Sweden in untouched original condition. The table is from the years circa 1780-1790 with traces of thin paint on the frame and a white painted tabletop....
Pine
Desk Swedish 18th Century Green Original Paint Sweden
Located in New York, NY
A writing desk Swedish made during the 18th century in Sweden.
Bentwood
French 18th Century Louis XV Walnut Writing Table
Located in New Orleans, LA
French 18th century Louis XV walnut writing table with two drawers and inset leather top. The cabriole legs are classic to the Louis XV style and feature hoofed feet at bottom.
Walnut
18th Century Russian Empire Desk
Located in Allerum, SE
Unusually large 19th century Russian Empire freestanding brass striped mahogany writing table / desk with an black leather insert top above three drawers. Russia, circa 1790 - 1810.
Brass
Late 18th Century French Louis XVI Inlaid Writing Desk with Parquetry Medallion
Located in Rancho Cucamonga, CA
Late 18th Century French Louis XVI Writing Desk A refined late 18th century French writing desk showcasing exceptional parquetry and marquetry craftsmanship in the Louis XVI neoclas...
Hardwood
18th Century Oak Country Side Writing Table
Located in Madrid, ES
A nice French country writing table, Louis XVI period, in solid oak, with a long drawer and drawer handle in bronze, the legs finished in sabot.
Bronze
Italian Late 18th Century Neoclassical Walnut Desk with Fruitwood Marquetry
Located in Atlanta, GA
A refined Italian late 18th century Neoclassical walnut desk, distinguished by its elegant proportions and understated sophistication.
Walnut
18th Century Italian Walnut Writing Table with Two Drawers and Turned Legs
Located in Atlanta, GA
This handsome Italian table dates to the 18th century and exemplifies the restrained, functional elegance characteristic of provincial Italian furniture of the period. Crafted in wal...
Fabric, Walnut
18th Century Louis XV Wood French Writing Table
Located in IT
The very unusual and particular center desk, called also bureau plat, was made in France, at Paris, in the 18th century, Louis XV period.
Wood
18th Century George III Mahogany Writing Table with Leather Inset
Located in Kittery Point, ME
In the French taste‚ the rectangular tooled leather inset writing surface with a three-quarter gallery‚ above two frieze drawers‚ with sham drawers to the reverse‚ raised on square t...
Brass
18th Century Lacquered Tuscan Desk Table with Hand Painted Decoration
Located in Atlanta, GA
An elegant lacquered wooden desk table from Tuscany, dating to the Louis XVI period, late 18th century.
Pine
Dutch 18th Century Metamorphic Architect’s Desk
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
A versatile Dutch architect’s desk from the late 1700s. This mahogany desk has an adjustable tilt-top drafting surface with six distinct height options. The writing surface is 32 ¼”H...
Brass
French Provincial Antique Cherrywood Writing Table, mid-18th century
Located in Shippensburg, PA
LOUIS XV CHERRYWOOD WRITING TABLE Southern France, circa mid-18th century 28" H x 24 3/4" D x 33" W A table that looks like it is ready to dance out of the room, this fabulous tabl...
Cherry
18th Century Mahogany Desk
Located in Lincolnshire, GB
A George III period mahogany kneehole desk of good size, with the original brasses and lovely one piece top. The whole piece is of great colour and patina, circa 1780 This desk is...
Brass
18th Century Country French Child's Desk
Located in Winter Park, FL
A late 18th century Country French child size desk, made of solid cherry. Beautifully crafted with turned legs and carved stretcher with center finial. Candle stand on the right, att...
Cherry
Choosing the perfect writing desk or writing table is a profoundly personal journey, one that people have been embarking upon for centuries.
Queen Atossa of Persia, from her writing table circa 500 B.C., is said to have been the originator of the art of handwritten letters. Hers was reportedly the first in a long and colorful history of penned correspondence that grew in popularity alongside literacy. The demand for suitable writing desks, which would serve the composer of the letters as well as ensure the comfort of the recipient naturally followed, and the design of these necessary furnishings has evolved throughout history.
Once people began to seek freedom from the outwardly ornate styles of the walnut and rosewood writing desks and drafting tables introduced in the name of Queen Victoria and King Louis XV, radical shifts occurred, such as those that materialized during the Art Nouveau period, when designers longed to produce furniture inspired by the natural world’s beauty. A prime example is the work of the famous late-19th-century Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí — his rolltop desk featured deep side drawers and was adorned with carved motifs that paid tribute to nature. Gaudí regularly combined structural precision with decorative elements, creating beautiful pieces of furniture in wood and metal.
Soon afterward, preferences for sleek, geometric, stylized forms in furniture that saw an emphasis on natural wood grains and traditional craftsmanship took hold. Today, Art Deco desks are still favored by designers who seek to infuse interiors with an air of luxury. One of the most prominent figures of the Art Deco movement was French decorator and furniture designer Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann. With his use of neoclassical motifs as well as expensive and exotic materials such as imported dark woods and inlays of precious metals for his writing desks, Ruhlmann came to symbolize good taste and modernity.
The rise in appreciation for Scandinavian modernism continues to influence the design of contemporary writing desks. It employs the “no fuss” or “less is more” approach to creating a tasteful, sophisticated space. Sweden’s master cabinetmaker Bruno Mathsson created gallery-worthy designs that are as functional as they are beautiful. Finnish architect Alvar Aalto never viewed himself as an artist, but, like Mathsson, his furniture designs reflected a fondness for organic materials and a humanistic approach. Danish designers such as Hans Wegner introduced elegant shapes and lines to mid-century desks and writing tables, often working in oak and solid teak.
From vintage desks to contemporary styles, 1stDibs offers a broad spectrum of choices for conducting all personal and business writing and reading activities.
Top interior designers show — and tell — us how to create delectable spaces for hosting dinner parties.
Fans of the French film star may be surprised to learn that he had a flair for furniture with sleek lines and disco-era flash.
Like other pieces in the firm’s Candy Box collection, the cheerful limited-edition design showcases French craft.
Whether you’re just moving in or ready to give your home a makeover, our guide will give you pointers on tables that are fitting for every room, nook and hallway.
From his massive collaborative workshop in a former paper factory, the designer concocts funky furniture from disused materials, as well as luxe hotel interiors like the new Mix Brussels.
The designer’s innovative use of an unexpected material gives this console a lift.
The stately piece brings both gravitas and whimsy to any work space.
Use them as tables or stools, indoors or out.