Guhl & Harbeck Style Chain Stitch Hand Crank Sewing Machine
Located in Guaynabo, PR
This is a Guhl & Harbeck style chainstitch hand crank sewing machine. The C shaped cast iron
Iron
$356Sale Price|20% Off
H 10.5 in W 13 in D 8 in
Guhl & Harbeck Style Chain Stitch Hand Crank Sewing Machine
Located in Guaynabo, PR
This is a Guhl & Harbeck style chainstitch hand crank sewing machine. The C shaped cast iron
Iron
A 1930s Art Deco Hand-Carved Oak French Box
Located in Aci Castello, IT
This is a 1930s French Art Deco hand-carved oak box, showcasing a unique blend of craftsmanship and geometric flair characteristic of the Art Deco period. Solid oak wood, noted for i...
Oak
$1,233
H 2.92 in W 4.3 in D 2.76 in
Erhard & Sohne Art Nouveau Jugendstil Arts and Crafts Jewelry Box Casket c. 1905
By Erhard & Söhne
Located in London, GB
A beautiful art nouveau casket made by Erhard and Sohne in Germany in c. 1905. The casket is exquisitely executed with foliate detailing, made in the Gothic revival style in both p...
Brass
$1,495
H 7.49 in W 5.12 in D 2.37 in
Antique Personal Diary Repository, Scottish, Brass, Keepsake Case, Victorian
Located in Hele, Devon, GB
This is a fine antique personal diary repository, originating from Scotland during the Victorian period, circa 1870. This striking book form keepsake case showcases the craftsmanship...
Brass
$22,835
H 28.75 in W 15.75 in D 8.67 in
Rare 19th Century Italian Memento Mori Bust / Sculpture Carrara Marble Vanitas
Located in Ijzendijke, NL
Masterfully carved Italian Vanitas / Memento Mori bust in solid marble from late 19th century. White Carrara marble skull combined with masterfully carved hood & robes all from one...
Carrara Marble
Steinway & Sons Concert Grand Piano
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
This extraordinary concert grand piano with 88 keys was made by the prestigious firm Steinway & Sons around 1894. The case's decoration was entrusted to the company Cuel & Cie and mo...
Wood, Giltwood
Venetian Monumental Seated Bird Cage
Located in Queens, NY
Italian Venetian style (20th Cent) octagonal shaped painted and decorated metal and wood bird cage with 8 upholstered seat and back cushions around base. (Franco Zefferelli Collection)
Metal
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
$527,726 / set
H 114.5 in W 35.5 in D 5 in
19th Century, Monumental Carved Boiserie Panels from Lartington Hall
Located in London, GB
The Lartington hall carved Boiserie panels by Signor Anton Leone Bulletti. A highly important suite of eight carved and patinated wood panels commissioned by Monsignor Thomas Edw...
Wood, Pine
$574,500
H 84 in W 56 in D 20 in
An Imperial Japanese Meiji Shibayama Tea Cabinet by The Tokugawa Samurai Clan
Located in Long Island City, NY, NY
An Imperial Japanese Meiji Shibayama Tea Ceremony Cabinet by The Tokugawa Samurai Clan. This extraordinary Meiji-period shibayama cabinet, attributed to the Tokugawa samurai clan, s...
Mother-of-Pearl, Wood, Lacquer
$131,588Sale Price|20% Off
H 90.95 in W 61.03 in D 77.56 in
IMPORTANT BISHOP JAMES STANLEY 1508 KING HENRY VII ENGLiSH OAK TUDOR TESTER BED
Located in West Sussex, Pulborough
Royal House Antiques Royal House Antiques is delighted to offer for sale this very rare and highly important, Museum quality, English Tudor King Henry VII Oak tester bed made for an...
Oak
$260,000
H 6.75 in W 17.5 in D 12.25 in
19th C. Gold, Damascene, Etched Steel Casket Box/Safe with Noble Coat of Arms
Located in New York, NY
An Incredible 19th Century Royal Casket Box/Safe with Coat of Arms, Made of Gold, Damascene, and Etched Steel. Charles Le Hon, a Belgian politician, lawyer and industrialist, served...
Gold, Steel
Exceptional Mahogany and Ormolu-Mounted Bibliotheque
Located in London, GB
The overhanging foliate cornice above a frieze with reliefs of female and male figures surmounted by ribbon ties and flanked by foliage and laurel leaves, above two pairs of glazed d...
Ormolu
$9,725
H 63.39 in W 65.75 in D 24.41 in
20th Century English Mahogany Forty Drawers Haberdashery Cabinet, c.1920
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
Antique early-20th Century English hand crafted mahogany haberdashery, this piece has forty open drawers protected by later painted glass. A very practical and a truly wonderful conv...
Glass, Wood
$479,751
H 16.15 in W 28.35 in D 20.48 in
Magnificent and large ormolu and hardstone Regency period ebonized wooden casket
Located in London, GB
Magnificent and large ormolu and hardstone mounted ebonized wooden casket English, 19th Century Height 41cm, width 72cm, depth 52cm Exceptionally fine and richly adorned, this beau...
Lapis Lazuli, Malachite, Ormolu
Clark & Johnson Gold Medal Sewing Machine
Located in Guaynabo, PR
This is a 19th Century Clark & Johnson Sewing Machine. It depicts an open octagonal shaped black painted iron manual hand crank sewing machine. Decorated with gold branches of leaves...
Iron
$1,262Sale Price|30% Off
H 10.24 in W 14.57 in D 9.45 in
Small Cast Iron Sewing Machine 1890 Junker & Ruh Art Nouveau Germany
Located in Palermo, Sicily
Small Cast Iron Sewing Machine 1890 Junker & Ruh Art Nouveau
Metal
Antique and vintage collectibles and curiosities can bring whimsy and wonder to any interior.
Decorating with old scientific instruments, historical memorabilia and vintage musical instruments, as well as other authentic collectibles and curiosities that can be found on 1stDibs, presents an opportunity to create a unique, natural history museum-like atmosphere in your home that can provoke conversation as often as it pays tribute to how far we’ve come in understanding our world.
And bringing collectibles and curiosities into your space is actually on trend — Wunderkammern, or curiosity cabinets, were all the rage in Europe during the 1500s and continued to have adherents there and in the U.S. in the following centuries. Today, however, they’re experiencing a real surge in popularity and influencing how many interior designers are furnishing and decorating homes — combining contemporary with antique, scientific with tribal, earthly with extraterrestrial, Les Lalanne tables with Flemish tapestries.
The original Wunderkammern were entire rooms filled with objects demonstrating their owners’ worldly knowledge: A proper one included artificiala or preciosa (objets d’art); naturalia (such as skeletons, shells, minerals); exotica (taxidermy or dried plants); and scientifica (scientific instruments), frequently alongside religious relics and ancient artifacts.
Pay tribute to a history of rich and diverse musical traditions that have taken shape all over the world by decorating your home with a collection of antique and vintage musical instruments — with a little help from strong hanging wire or some wall hooks, vintage brass instruments such as a gong, French horn or trumpet can help elevate a home office or complement the efforts you’ve made to ensure a welcoming vibe in your home’s entryway. Bells or antique wind instruments can add provocative metallic contrasts to dark woods as tabletop decorative objects.
Create an intriguing focal point with Georgian scientific instruments, such as stick barometers with mahogany cases or lacquered brass telescopes. These items stem from an era named for the monarchies of the four King Georges, who ruled England in succession starting in 1714 (plus King William’s reign, which lasted until 1837). Just as there was beautiful jewelry produced during the period that today is coveted by collectors, there is much to be found in the collectibles and curiosities realm too.
Wanderlust, nostalgia and a shared love of good design are contributing factors to certain trends in decorating — just as vintage trunks and luggage have reappeared as furniture or home accents in a bedroom or foyer, decorating with globes, maps or nautical objects is similarly rooted in the allure of travel and a penchant for the stylish finishing touch that collectibles bring to our homes.
Find a wide range of antique and vintage collectibles and curiosities on 1stDibs.