24K Gold-Plated Five-Piece Desk Set in Wood Presentation Box, 1970s Italy
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The set includes a magnifying glass, letter opener, ruler, desk knife, and pen holder, combining luxurious materials with practical functionality.
Gold Plate
$960Sale Price|20% Off
Italian Aldo Tura Timber Desk Lamp with Pen Holder, 1950s
By Aldo Tura
Located in Byron Bay, NSW
Beautiful Italian Aldo Tura dark timber desk lamp with pen holder 1950s. Fully functional.
Wood
Art Deco Style Copper Gooseneck Desk Lamp with Pen Holder
Located in Van Nuys, CA
Art Deco style Machine Age brown metal gooseneck desk lamp with a pen holder.
Metal, Copper
Wicker Cane Desk or Bathroom Vanity Brush or Pen Holder
Located in New York, NY
A wicker cane and acrylic bathroom vanity toothbrush/makeup brush or desk pen/pencil holder. Piece is blonde cane wicker covered in clear acrylic.
Cane, Acrylic, Wood
French Art Déco Metal Desk Tidy with Woman Horseriding and a pair of Inkwells
Located in North Miami, FL
Early 20th century french Art Déco metal desk tidy with woman horseriding, pen holder and a pair of inkwells By: uknown Material: metal, silver plate Technique: cast, molded, polish...
Metal, Silver Plate
$336Sale Price|20% Off
Chrome Bull and Pen Holder Statue Decorative Desk Accessory, Italy 1970s
Located in Nuernberg, DE
Classic 20th century Bull statue on a marble base with a pen holder. Desktop accessory, made of metal, chrome and marble.
Marble, Metal, Chrome
Antique Art Nouveau Gilt Gold Brass Desk Tray Pen Keys Holder Vide Poche
Located in Greven, DE
Antique Art Nouveau Gilt Gold Brass Desk Tray Pen Keys Holder Vide Poche Continental Brass c. 1900 Dimensions: H x W x D: 2cm x 23cm x 6cm Crafted around the turn of the centu...
Brass
Modern Leather Portfolio Folder by Limac Design - Regenerated Leather
By Limac Design
Located in Conegliano, IT
The document holder in regenerated leather by Limac Design is part of the Ascanio, Aristotele, Medea, Brando, Ebe Collections, therefore it can be added to the desk pads, letter open...
Leather
LEONARDO Leather Office Set by Limac Design, Modern & Eco-Friendly
By Limac Design
Located in Conegliano, IT
Our range of accessories includes desk pads, pen holders, mouse pads, boxes and organizer trays, letter holders, waste bins, coat racks… all you need to do is imagine your dream desk...
Leather
FAZOLY COLOR Regenerated Leather Tissue Box - Modern Italian Style
By Limac Design
Located in Conegliano, IT
The range of accessories includes desk pads, pen holders and mouse pads, as well as storage boxes and trays, letter holders and waste bins, and coat stands… all you have to do is ima...
Leather
Modern Leather Valet Tray QULUX by Limac Design - Italian Craftsmanship
By Limac Design
Located in Conegliano, IT
Made of prestigious leather, the desk pad and pen holder from the Qulux line are available to enrich and complete your desk.
Leather
19th Century Black Forest Cigar Holder of a Bear Holding a Barrel
Located in San Francisco, CA
the hand-carved standing bear with forward gaze and glass eyes holding a barrel for matches in front of a larger barrel for cigar storage; all over an oval carved base fitted with a ...
Walnut
$760Sale Price|20% Off
French Art Deco Cigarette Box or Makeup Pencil Holder by Marius Agogue Loiret
Located in Miami, FL
This very decorative box would look great on a desk as a pen or pencil holder. It would also make a wonderful makeup pencil or brush holder on a vanity.
Birch, Mahogany
Bitossi Rimini Blu Ceramic Decorative Desk Organizer by Aldo Londi, Italy 1960s
By Bitossi, Aldo Londi
Located in Roma, IT
This versatile piece can be used as a desk organizer, pen holder, brush holder, or as a purely decorative ceramic object.
Ceramic
Set of 3 Small Ceramic Vases in the Style of Georges Jouve, 1950s
By Georges Jouve
Located in Marcq-en-Barœul, Hauts-de-France
These pieces will naturally find their place grouped together on a sideboard, on a desk as precious pen holders, or scattered to hold small single-stem flowers in a contemporary or m...
Ceramic
Enzo Mari for F.lli Mannelli Travertine Ashtrays and Penholders, Italy 1970s
By Fratelli Mannelli, Enzo Mari
Located in Naples, IT
Totally hand-carved travertine desk accessories consisting of a pen-holder and an ashtray designed by Enzo Mari for Fratelli Mannelli, made in Italy in the 1970s
Travertine
$850Sale Price|43% Off
French Art Deco Cigarette Box, Walnut Wood and Leather
Located in Miami, FL
This very decorative box would look great on a desk as a pen or pencil holder. Wonderful design.
Leather, Walnut
Whether you’ve carved out a space for a nifty home office or you prefer the morning commute, why not dress up your desk with antique and vintage desk accessories? To best tiptoe the line between desk efficiency and desk enjoyment, we suggest adding a touch of the past to your modern-day space.
Desks are a funny thing. Their basic premise has remained the same for quite literally centuries: a flat surface, oftentimes a drawer, and potentially a shelf or two. However, the contents that lay upon the desk? Well, the evolution has been drastic to say the least.
Thank the Victorians for the initial popularity of the paperweight. The Industrial Revolution offered the novel concept of leisure-time to Europeans, giving them more time to take part in the then crucial activity of letter writing. Decorative glass paperweight designs were all the rage, and during the mid-19th-century some of the most popular makers included the French companies of Baccarat, St. Louis and Clichy.
As paper was exceedingly expensive in the early to mid-19th-century, every effort was made to utilize a full sheet of it. Paper knives, which gave way to the modern letter opener, were helpful for cutting paper down to an appropriate size.
Books — those bound volumes of paper, you may recall — used to be common occurrences on desks of yore and where there were books there needed to be bookends. As a luxury item, bookend designs have run the gamut from incorporating ultra-luxurious materials (think marble and Murano glass) to being whimsical desk accompaniments (animal figurines were highly popular choices).
Though the inkwell’s extinction was ushered in by the advent of the ballpoint pen (itself quasi-obsolete at this point), there is still significant charm to be had from placing one of these bauble-like objets in a central spot on one’s desk. You may be surprised to discover the mood-boosting powers an antique — and purposefully empty — inkwell can provide.
The clamor for desk clocks arose as the Industrial Revolution transitioned labor from outdoors to indoors, and allowed for the mass-production of clock parts in factories. Naturally, elaborate designs soon followed and clocks could be found made by artisans and luxury houses like Cartier.
Find antique and vintage desk accessories today on 1stDibs.
The French sculptor shaped dense blocks into tactile forms meant to be used and held.
After synthetic dyes changed fashion, home goods and printed matter, it was only a matter of time till glass caught up.
The brilliantly simple design turns a modest bouquet into a major statement.
The Greek tragedian is said to have been handsome in his day.
Even for those who don’t indulge, elegant smoking accessories and audacious art portraying cigar enthusiasts hold a nostalgic allure.
It’s an excellent example of the sought-after ceramics coming out of South Africa’s KwaZulu-Natal province.
Thanks to its new leadership, the Spanish maker of figurines, busts and lighting is on a mission to update the art of porcelain for the 21st century.
The free-form stoneware piece is inspired by the magnolia tree and its associations with home.