Biedermeier Headboard
Antique 19th Century European Biedermeier Beds and Bed Frames
Metal, Bronze
Late 20th Century Biedermeier Dressers
Satinwood
Vintage 1940s American Neoclassical Beds and Bed Frames
Bronze, Gold
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Late 20th Century Biedermeier Beds and Bed Frames
Satinwood
Late 20th Century Biedermeier Bedroom Sets
Wood, Satinwood
Antique 1840s Swedish Biedermeier Chairs
Birch
Antique 1830s European Biedermeier Wardrobes and Armoires
Walnut
Late 20th Century American Biedermeier Bedroom Sets
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Late 20th Century American Biedermeier Night Stands
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Antique 1830s German Biedermeier Secretaires
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Antique 1830s Austrian Biedermeier Beds and Bed Frames
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Antique 1820s German Biedermeier Wardrobes and Armoires
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Antique 19th Century German Biedermeier Beds and Bed Frames
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Antique 19th Century Hungarian Biedermeier Chaise Longues
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Antique 19th Century Hungarian Biedermeier Daybeds
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Antique 19th Century Daybeds
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A Close Look at biedermeier Furniture
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.