$10,000Sale Price|20% Off
H 92.25 in W 53.25 in D 24 in
19th Century American Empire Secretary Cabinet
Located in Chicago, IL
A remarkable, and strong early 19th century American Empire secretary bookcase of grand
Mahogany
$14,500
H 84.5 in W 46.25 in D 21.5 in
Antique Empire Cylinder-Top Secretary with Bookcase in Burled Ash
Located in INTERLAKEN, NY
An exceptional Empire secretary bookcase in fine burl ash wood. Denmark or North Germany, circa
Ash, Burl
19th Century Empire Mahogany Bureau Secretary with Bookcase
Located in Miami, FL
A very fine Empire secretary in West Indies mahogany, also known as Cuban mahogany, considered to
Mahogany
$14,500
H 84 in W 48 in D 24 in
19th Century Scandinavian Birch Empire Bureau Secretary with Bookcase, c. 1820
Located in INTERLAKEN, NY
A very fine Scandinavian Empire/Biedermeier secretary in beautiful birch wood with mahogany
Birch
Russian Mahogany Secretary Bookcase
Located in Queens, NY
Russian (18th Century) mahogany secretary bookcase with brass gallery pediment and trim with 2
Brass
$17,500
H 83 in W 46 in D 21 in
Antique North German/Danish Empire Cylinder-Top Secretary with Bookcase, c. 1815
Located in INTERLAKEN, NY
secretary with bookcase in ash with inlays and marquetry silhouettes of neoclassical Roman images. Cylinder
Ash
Sold
H 68.5 in W 63.63 in D 17 in
R. J. Horner Style Victorian Mahogany Glass Front Triple Bookcase with Secretary
By R.J. Horner & Co.
Located in South Bend, IN
An outstanding antique Victorian or American Empire side-by-side triple bookcase cabinet with drop
Brass
Empire Bookcase Secretary
Located in Bradenton, FL
A superb two piece 19th century Empire Mahogany and Cherry blind door bookcase secretary
Mahogany
19th Century Empire Mahogany Bureau Secretary with Bookcase
Located in INTERLAKEN, NY
A very fine empire secretary in West Indies mahogany, also known as Cuban mahogany, considered to
Mahogany
Sold
H 87.25 in W 45.25 in D 23 in
Early 19th Century Mahogany American Empire Secretary with Bookcase
Located in Nashville, TN
Early 19th century American Empire secretary with bookcase Circa 1840 Highly polished flamed
Mahogany
Sold
H 82.5 in W 39 in D 25.5 in
Antique American Empire Carved Flame Mahogany Secretary, Bookcase & Desk, C1840
Located in Big Flats, NY
*** Antique American Empire Flame Mahogany Secretary with Upper Bookcase with Double Glass Doors over Lower
Mahogany
Sold
H 73.25 in W 42.75 in D 33.5 in
Antique American Empire Carved Flame Mahogany and Bronze Secretary Bookcase
Located in Big Flats, NY
Antique American Empire secretary features flame mahogany construction with three long drawers in
Bronze
Sold
H 91 in W 48 in D 24 in
American Empire Style Crotch Mahogany Secretary and Bookcase, Late 18th Century
Located in Savannah, GA
American Empire Style Crotch Mahogany Secretary and Bookcase, Late 18th Century. Five shelves on
Mahogany
Sold
H 86 in W 41.5 in D 20.25 in
American Mahogany and Stenciled Secretary with Bookcase. NY Circa 1825
Located in Charleston, SC
American mahogany stenciled and painted foliage secretary bookcase with fitted inlaid birds eye
Sold
H 96 in W 46.5 in D 24.75 in
American Classical Secretary Bookcase in Mahogany Attributable to John Meads
Located in INTERLAKEN, NY
Mahogany Secretary Bookcase attributable to John Meads, Albany, New York, circa early 1800's. Features
Mahogany
Sold
H 81.25 in W 44 in L 81.25 in
Antique Flame Mahogany Slant Front Secretary Desk with Bookcase, circa 1850s
Located in South Bend, IN
A stunning antique flame mahogany slant front secretary desk with glass front bookcase USA
Glass, Mahogany
American Flame Mahogany Empire Bookcase Secretary, circa 1850
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Period 1850 American Empire secretary desk in flame mahogany. Two-door bookcase, two small drawers
Mahogany
Antique American Empire Flame Mahogany Bookcase Secretary, circa 1845
By Anthony Quervelle
Located in Big Flats, NY
An antique American Empire secretary offers deeply striated flame mahogany construction with upper
Glass, Mahogany
19th Century Empire Mahogany Bureau Secretary with Bookcase
Located in Miami, FL
A very fine Empire secretary in West Indies mahogany, also known as Cuban mahogany, considered to
Sold
H 83.5 in W 47 in D 21.5 in
Antique American Empire Flame Mahogany Bookcase Drop Front Secretary, circa 1840
Located in Big Flats, NY
An American Empire flame mahogany secretary features upper bookcase with double fretwork glass
Bronze
Sold
H 83 in W 46.5 in D 24.25 in
Antique Empire Bureau Secretary with Bookcase in West Indies Mahogany, c. 1800
Located in INTERLAKEN, NY
An exquisite Empire bureau secretary with bookcase, in fine West Indies/ Cuban mahogany. Denmark
Mahogany
Bold Antique 19th Century Hand-Painted Empire Secretary Bookcase
Located in Hudson, NY
A very nice and unique antique Empire secretary bookcase, circa 1850, with a hand-painted
$15,439 / item
H 32.68 in W 110.24 in D 40.56 in
Art Deco Sofa by Munna Design Studio with Velvet Upholstery
By Munna Design Studio
Located in NEW YORK, NY
This sofa features a wonderfully elegant fan-shaped motif, with its accentuated curvy lines with decadent and lavish finish. The feminine curves are ravishingly enhanced by the diffe...
Velvet
Library of Antique Leatherbound Books
Located in Brønshøj, DK
This collection consists of 400 antique decorative books, mainly dating from 1850–1950, with most published before 1920. The books are bound in leather, many with fine gold leaf embo...
Gold Leaf
Classic Empire Center Table, Oatmeal
Located in Westwood, NJ
A Classic Empire style grey cerused oak oatmeal stained center table with a carved ogee edge, raised on an octagonal pedestal base. Dimensions: 42" W x 42" D x 30" H. Clearance: 27"
Wood
$2,799Sale Price|20% Off
H 38.78 in W 89.77 in D 28.35 in
Antique Large Biedermeier Sofa in Green with brass details, circa 1860
Located in Opole, PL
We present you this massive sofa, typical for the Biedermeier style, with a softly upholstered seat and backrest. This article of furniture has characteristically rolled outwards, vo...
Walnut
$116,631
H 240 in W 552 in D 120 in
Mid-Victorian Moorish wrought & cast iron pergola or decorative garden structure
Located in London, GB
A monumental Moorish mid-Victorian wrought iron Pergola or Decorative Garden Structure, a unique masterpiece in High Victorian Ironwork design. Our research confirms it is French, da...
Wrought Iron
Bespoke Handmade Belgian Linen Sofa
Located in Jesteburg, DE
Introducing the home collection. An iconic, unobtrusive design. A small selection of timeless Flemish designs made by hand for us in a small third generation workshop in Belgium....
Linen
$231,334Sale Price|33% Off
H 51.19 in W 55.12 in D 201.58 in
Rare Victorian Firescreen with Taxidermy Hummingbirds by Henry Ward
By Henry Ward
Located in Amsterdam, NL
England, third quarter of the 19th century On two scrolling foliate feet with casters, above which a rectangular two-side glazed frame, with on top a two-sided shield with initial...
Other
$16,750Sale Price|25% Off
H 83 in W 42.75 in D 21 in
19th Century Federal Period Duncan Phyfe Style Flame Mahogany Secretary Bookcase
By Duncan Phyfe
Located in CHARLESTON, SC
Rare and important antique American early 19th century figured mahogany "Duncan Phyfe" style flap-top secretary bookcase with gorgeous lyre-shaped glazed doors. Color of mahogany has...
Mahogany
$4,555Sale Price|20% Off
H 58.27 in W 45.28 in D 19.69 in
Biedermeier Secretary, Austria, 19th Century
Located in Wrocław, Poland
This Biedermeier secretary comes from Austria and was made in 19th century. It is made of coniferous wood, veneered with maple wood. It has undergone a professional renovation proces...
Maple
19th Century Biedermeier Column Secretary
Located in Berlin, DE
Cuba mahogany on pine tree. Architecturally arranged front. High-right body on padfoot feet. Fitted with three drawers of different sizes, the base drawer is curved. Straight writing...
Mahogany, Wood
19th Century English Tortoiseshell Tea Caddy
Located in Atlanta, GA
19th Century English Tortoiseshell Tea Caddy
Tortoise Shell
$528,269 / 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
19th Century French Writing Desk Secretary
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Very fine late 19th century French writing desk secretary with dore bronze mountings and Marble. It is made of a variety of woods - fruitwood, satinwood and walnut. The overall meas...
Marble, Bronze
French Empire 19th Century Walnut Armoire
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
An impressive French Empire-style armoire from the early 1800s. The pronounced cornice makes a statement above the pair of paneled and carved doors all crafted of solid, book-matched...
Steel, Brass
Biedermeier Secretary Desk, Mid-19th Century
Located in Greding, DE
Secretary desk with exquisite ash veneer and a three-drawer commode base. Behind the leather-covered writing surface lies a spacious arched compartment, complemented by six small dra...
Bronze
$24,500
H 67.13 in W 43 in D 20.5 in
George I Secretary Bureau or Escritoire of Figured Walnut from the 18th Century
Located in Austin, TX
A fine English period George I large secretary bureau escritoire - or scriptor - of patinated walnut from the 18th century. Featuring burr walnut-figured veneers framed in broad cros...
Metal, Brass
Your antique, new or vintage secretary desk has become the (chic) saving grace of the "new normal" at home.
Simply put, a secretary desk is a multifunctional piece of furniture with a hinged writing surface that folds open or drops down. When the leaf is folded out, small inner storage compartments — pigeonholes, cubbies, recesses or drawers — are revealed.
Traditionally, a secretary is composed of two parts — a chest of drawers on the bottom and a cabinet with shelves on the top. Taking its name from the French word for the piece, secrétaire, the secretary desk dates back to the 18th century, when Paris-based cabinetmaker Jean-François Oeben, known for his exquisite marquetry and clever mechanical desks, is thought to have invented the secrétaire à abbattant, or drop-leaf desk.
While the defining drop-down feature of the secretary desk has remained constant, the materials used, as well as its configuration, size and style have evolved over time.
At first, secretaries were typically made from exotic woods, like rosewood, tulipwood and kingwood; later, hardwoods like cherry, maple, oak and mahogany were more common. The desks also became lighter, with space carved out of the lower half for the writer’s feet or with drawers replaced by legs — making them more table-like.
When open, the secretary is a dynamic, versatile Wunderkammer. When closed, it’s a sophisticated, space-saving piece of furniture.
“A fine secretary with a good provenance adds stature and credence to its owner — it is a cornerstone piece,” says antiques dealer Stanley Weiss, who specializes in 18th- and 19th-century English and American furniture. “In this disposable world, fine furniture is always passed on and speaks to who its owner is.”
No matter what style or period you choose, and no matter how you decide to use it, the timeless, flexible secretary desk is bound to become an indispensable part of your daily routine.
Browse a range of antique and vintage secretary desks on 1stDibs, including mid-century modern secretaires, Georgian secretaires and others.
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