Biedermeier Semainier or Tallboy Chest on Chest of Flame Mahogany
Located in Austin, TX
A fine Danish semainier or tall boy (chest-on-chest) from the 19th century, featuring a Biedermeier
Metal, Brass
Unavailable
H 64.57 in W 40.16 in D 21.26 in
Danish Mid 19th Century Biedermeier Commode Tall Chest of drawers
Located in Santander, ES
Attractive flame mahogany Danish Biedermeier tallboy commode dating to the end of the second
Mahogany
Unavailable
H 61.78 in W 40.24 in D 20.56 in
19th Century Swedish Biedermeier Chest of Drawers Serpentine Tallboy Mahogany
Located in Newcastle upon Tyne, GB
A stunning 19th century Swedish Biedermeier flamed mahogany serpentine chest of drawers. The
Mahogany
Unavailable
H 59.49 in W 40.83 in D 20.08 in
Danish Biedermeier Chest of Drawers 19th Century Flamed Mahogany
Located in Newcastle upon Tyne, GB
An impressive 19th century Danish Biedermeier semainier tallboy chest of drawers. Boasting fine
Mahogany
Biedermeier Tallboy or Chest on Chest of Mahogany
Located in Austin, TX
A Danish tall boy (or chest-on-chest) featuring a Biedermeier-style design of flame-cut mahogany
Sold
H 43.71 in W 42.52 in D 18.9 in
Swedish Biedermeier Chest of Drawers Writing Desk Chiffonier Tallboy, Mid-1800s
Located in Lewes, England
Rare Swedish Biedermeier chest of drawers writing desk chiffonier in top grade golden birch veneers
Birch
Antique Mahogany Tallboy Chest of Drawers, Denmark circa 1840-60
Located in Round Top, TX
The mahogany veneer is stunning in this classic tall chest of 7 drawers. The highboy is built in 2 sections making it easier to move/install and rests on carved feet. This handsome...
Mahogany
Biedermeier Tallboy / Secretaire
Located in London, GB
The fourth drawer has a fold out lectern and small compartments
Birch
Biedermeier Tallboy / Secretaire
Located in London, GB
Six graduated drawers, the fourth drawer has out lectern and small compartments. Architectural facade with two columns.
Birch, Lacquer
19th Century Biedermeier Birch Tallboy
Located in London, GB
The chest has six drawers and the third drawer from the bottom pulls out to reveal a fold out lectern with black leather surface and small compartments with lift-up lids. It has blac...
Birch
Sold
H 64.97 in W 44.49 in D 20.87 in
19th Century Biedermeier Mahogany German Tallboy Six Drawers, 1830s
Located in Roma, RM
Imposing German tallboy, linear shapes, embellished with capitals, on columns, ebonized. In full
Mahogany
Sold
H 64 in W 40 in L 64 in
Antique Mahogany Tallboy Chest of Drawers 19th Century Danish Biedermeier Style
Located in Longdon, Tewkesbury
Antique mahogany tallboy chest of drawers 19th century Danish Biedermeier style. Magnificent
Mahogany
Sold
H 64 in W 40 in D 19 in
Antique Mahogany Tallboy Chest of Drawers 19th Century Danish Biedermeier Style
Located in Longdon, Tewkesbury
Antique Mahogany Tallboy Chest of Drawers 19th century Danish Biedermeier style Magnificent
Mahogany
Sold
H 61.03 in W 39.38 in D 20.48 in
Danish Mid-19th Century Biedermeier Commode Tall Chest of Drawers
Located in Lisboa, Lisboa
Mahogany flame veneer Danish Biedermeier Tallboy chest of drawers, form the 1850s-1960s. With
Mahogany, Oak
Mahogany Neoclassical Bed Frame, 19th Century
Located in Madrid, ES
"Boat" bed in carved mahogany wood, 19th century. Head and feet of the same height, are decorated with a circular molding, while the rear, by harmony, follows the lines of the front...
Wood, Mahogany
$26,000
H 102 in W 61.5 in D 79 in
English Georgian Mahogany Gadrooned and Upholstered Tester Bed, Circa 1800
Located in Charleston, SC
English Georgian mahogany four-poster bed with a carved molded inset headboard, tapered head post, serpentine gadrooned and upholstered tester with a centered carved urn & swags, dec...
Upholstery, Mahogany
Organic Modern Floor Lamp Natural Wood Handmade Ivory Fluted Shade
By Isabel Moncada
Located in San Antonio, TX
PATA DE ELEFANTE (LARGE) floor lamp was designed for the Atomic collection by Mexican artist Isabel Moncada. Named Pata de Elefante –Elephant‘s Foot– for the prominent shape at its ...
Textile, Wood, Linen, Fiberglass
$4,985Sale Price / set|26% Off
H 52 in W 14.25 in D 11 in
Pair of French Louis XV Style "Semainier" Tall Lingerie Commodes Marble with Top
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A pair of French Louis XV style "Semainier" tall chest commodes with a Brêche d'Alep marble top. The slender walnut and tulipwood body, each fitted with seven drawers with gilt bronz...
Marble, Bronze
Tall Narrow Blue Painted Louis XVI Chest of Drawers
Located in Kastrup, DK
Tall Louis XVI/Gustavian chest of drawers with 11 drawers. This chest is a custom-made piece, making it unique. Crafted from pine wood, it has been conservator-restored with blue pai...
Pine
French Restauration Period Mahogany and Gilt Bronze Daybed
Located in London, GB
This grand daybed would make a fantastic addition to a traditional lounge room: framed in dark mahogany and upholstered in green and gold striped silk, the daybed is a fine work of a...
Ormolu, Bronze
$24,500
H 29 in W 59.25 in D 29.25 in
Pair of French Louis XVI Style Carved-Wood Cream-Lacquered Settees, Jansen Attr.
By Maison Jansen
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A Fine Pair of French Louis XVI Style Carved-wood Cream-Lacquered Settees, probably by Maison Jansen. The rectangular shaped Love Seats, each with scrolled carved armrests ending wit...
Fabric, Satin, Silk, Wood
$10,163Sale Price|24% Off
H 57.09 in W 36.23 in D 16.93 in
Early 19th Century South German Biedermeier Secretaire in Walnut
Located in Darmstadt, DE
Elegant Biedermeier secretaire crafted in South Germany around 1820. The piece combines solid walnut and walnut veneer with a striking mirrored grain on the façade. The interior is m...
Brass
$24,000 / set
H 79 in W 27 in D 3 in
Pair of Magnificent Antique French Carved Wood Panels Depicting the Four Seasons
Located in Bridgeport, CT
An Extraordinary Pair of early 20th century carved wood Panels depicting the Four Seasons. Tall narrow unpainted panels with high relief carved decoration with motifs of the Four Sea...
Wood
$185,000 / set
H 12 in W 12 in D 10 in
A 200 Plus Set of 19 Century Imperial Russian Silver Flatware by Andrei Bragin
By Andrei Bragin
Located in Vancouver, British Columbia
An exceptional and extremely rare set of a combination of silver and vermeil (gilded silver) flatware designed and crafted in St Petersburg Russia by Andrei Stepanovich Bragin d...
Silver, Vermeil
$187,500
H 102 in W 84.5 in D 22.5 in
Exceptional 19th Century English Chinoiserie Pagoda Display Cabinet
Located in Houston, TX
Large-scale 19th century English display cabinet executed in the Chinoiserie tradition. Constructed in carved mahogany and conceived as a tripartite architectural façade, each glazed...
Glass, Mahogany
Pair of French Walnut Library Ladders
Located in Queens, NY
Pair of French (19th Century) walnut library ladders with side railings and steps leading to a top platform (on casters) (attributed to Napoleon III's personal library) (Related item...
Walnut
$10,700
H 37.25 in W 50.25 in D 23 in
19th Century Fine Biedermeier Walnut Chest of Drawers. Vienna, c. 1825.
Located in Vienna, AT
Hello, This exquisite, early Biedermeier walnut chest of drawers was made in Vienna circa 1825. Viennese Biedermeier is distinguished by their sophisticated proportions, rare and re...
Brass
19th Century Biedermeier Style Mahogany Armoire
Located in Berlin, DE
Unique Biedermeier floorboard, circa 1825. Cuba mahogany on softwood. On the log feet high-rectangular two-door corpus with profile-framed arch-shaped fields. Architecturally arrang...
Mahogany, Softwood
Outstanding Louis XV-Style Mahogany Bureau Plat
Located in Lymington, Hampshire
An outstanding Louis XV-style mahogany bureau plat after a model by Jacques B. Dubois, from the estate of Phyllis McGuire, the shaped leather-inset top above an elaborate frieze with...
Ormolu
$36,000
H 10 in Dm 13.75 in
Dinner Service, 86 Piece, Flow Blue and White, Classic Onion Meissen Pattern
By Meissen Porcelain
Located in Montreal, Quebec
86 piece dinner service with the marking: "Original ZWIEBELMUSTER, Czechoslovakia", in the Classic Blue Onion, Meissen Pattern, comprising: 24 dinner plates, 9.5" diameter 12...
Porcelain
Shopping for a commode or a chest of drawers?
Commode is the French term for a low chest of drawers, but it is also sometimes used to denote any case piece with a particularly intricate design. The commode dates to circa 1700 France, where it was used as an alternative to a taller cabinet piece so as to not obscure paneled, mirrored or tapestried walls. Coffers, or chests, which were large wooden boxes with hinged lids and sometimes stood on ball feet, preceded chests of drawers, a fashionable cabinet furnishing that garnered acclaim for its obvious storage potential and versatility. The term commode was also used to refer to a piece of bedroom furniture — a washstand or nightstand that contained a chamber pot.
As time passed, French and British furniture makers led the way in the production of chests of drawers, and features like the integration of bronze and ornamental pulls became commonplace. Antique French commodes in the Louis XV style were sometimes crafted in mahogany or walnut, while an Italian marble top added a sophisticated decorative flourish. This specific type of case piece grew in popularity in the years that followed.
So, what makes a chest of drawers different from a common dresser? Dressers are short, and chests of drawers are overall taller pieces of furniture that typically do not have room on the top for a mirror as most dressers do. Tallboys and highboys are variations of the dresser form. Some chests of drawers have one column of four to six long drawers or three long drawers in their bottom section that are topped by a cluster of small side-by-side drawers on the top. To further complicate things, we sometimes refer to particularly short chests of drawers as nightstands.
Even though chests of drawers are commonly thought of as bedroom furniture to store clothing, these are adaptable pieces. A chest of drawers can house important documents — think of your walnut Art Deco commode as an upgrade to your filing cabinet. Nestle your chest near your home’s front door to store coats and other outerwear, while the top can be a place to drop your handbag. Add some flair to your kitchen, where this lovable case piece can hold pots, pans and even cookbooks.
When shopping for the right chest of drawers for your home, there are a few key things to consider: What will you be storing in it? How big a chest will you need?
Speaking of size, don’t dream too big. If your space is on the smaller side, a more streamlined vintage mid-century modern chest of drawers, perhaps one designed by Paul McCobb or T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, may best suit your needs.
At 1stDibs, we make it easy to add style and storage to your home. Browse our collection of antique and vintage commodes and chests of drawers today.