Sold|$1,480
Low Chinese Splayed Leg Table, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
The table dates to the mid-19th century and is crafted of northern elm (yumu) with mortise-and-tenon joinery, without the use of nails and screws.
Elm
Low Table By Paul McCobb
By Paul McCobb
Located in Sagaponack, NY
A spare and useful rectilinear low table in walnut, brass and milk glass having two floating drawers and expressive lacquered brass teardrop pulls.
Brass
Cork Low Table By Paul Frankl
By Paul Frankl, Johnson Furniture Co.
Located in Sagaponack, NY
An uncommon circular cocktail or low table having a veneered cork top floating on three wide splayed mahogany legs.
Cork, Mahogany
Sold|$4,280
Chinese Low Three Drawer Table, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This impressive three-drawer table combines simplicity of form with the timeless appeal of natural materials. The low table was seamlessly constructed in the 19th-century using tradi...
Wood, Lacquer
Chinese Black Lacquer Square Kang Table, c. 1850
Located in Chicago, IL
This grand black lacquer table beautifully exemplifies the unique forms of classical Chinese furniture. Constructed in the mid-19th century using traditional joinery methods, the tab...
Elm
Large Stunning Solid Brass Cocktail Table by Lorin Marsh, 1970s
By Lorin Marsh
Located in Dallas, TX
This coffee table is beautiful. Solid brass supports that have been polished, interior of each support is glossy brass finish and exterior is a satin finish. 3/4" Glass appears float...
Brass
Midcentury Olive Burl Waterfall Cocktail Table, After Milo Baughman
By Thayer Coggin, Milo Baughman, Arthur Umanoff
Located in Decatur, GA
Mid-Century Modern waterfall Parsons style coffee table in burled olive wood, after Milo Baughman.
Olive, Burl
Vintage Italian Cocktail Table by Willy Rizzo
By Willy Rizzo
Located in North Hollywood, CA
Phenomenal vintage cocktail table designed by Willy Rizzo in Italy, circa 1970s. This stunning design features a faux marble top that sits over a stainless steel base, making it seem...
Stainless Steel
Sold|$1,600
Paul Tuttle Low Table or Bench by Baker
By Baker Furniture Company, Michael Taylor
Located in Highland, IN
Designed by Paul Tuttle, Michael Taylor, and Winsor White as part of Baker's New World group c.1953, this long low table has an elegant architectural base and a floating top. It was ...
Brass
Travertine-Topped Low Table By Paul McCobb
By Paul McCobb
Located in Sagaponack, NY
An elegant and beautifully minimalist low table by Paul McCobb made of travertine, walnut and square-gauge brass, having an exposed frame and a floating bank of narrow drawers, in ex...
Travertine, Brass
Milo Baughman Pair of Stainless Steel Drum Tables
By Directional, Milo Baughman
Located in Highland, IN
This handsome pair of drum tables by Milo Baughman for Directional serve as side or end tables, occasional tables, or coffee tables. They look great individually or when used in tand...
Stainless Steel
Scandinavian Modern Teak and Ebony Round Folding Table
By Harriet Englund, Svend Willumsen, Fritz Hansen
Located in Minneapolis, MN
Round folding occasional table with black lacquered legs designed by H. Englund & Svend Age Williumsen and produced by Fritz Hansen. This is lightweight and multipurpose Danish moder...
Ebony, Teak
Adrian Pearsall for Craft Associates Walnut Table or Bench
By Adrian Pearsall, Craft Associates
Located in Hudson, NY
Beautiful walnut framed table or bench with solid heavy stone floating top made of textured slate. Stunning piece.
Slate
Arturo Pani Brass and Glass Circular Cocktail Table with Antiqued Mirror Shelf
By Arturo Pani
Located in Palm Desert, CA
An exceptional circular cocktail table designed by Arturo Pani in Mexico City, circa 1950s. This finely detailed design exemplifies Pani’s distinctive interpretation of Hollywood Reg...
Brass
Thomas Swift Studio Cantilever Architectural Designed Low Table, circa 1980
Located in Kingston, NY
Offered is a Thomas Swift Studio Cantilever Architectural designed and incised decorated teak low table, circa 1980. This table is take on the Frank Loyd Wright visual aesthetic. It ...
Teak
Genaro Alvarez Six Piece Butterfly Mosaic Cocktail Table Mexico 1950s
By Genaro Alvarez
Located in Camden, ME
Six Piece Studio Mosaic table by Genaro Alvarez composed of intricate inlaid glass mosaic designs of 6 butterflies, on six triangular, interchangeable mahogany bases created at the G...
Brass
Customized Aperitivo Table by Cassina for a Milanese Espresso Bar, 1950s
By Cassina
Located in Munster, NRW
Cassina coffee table in wood, Formica and cast iron, Italy, probably 1950s. Metal label reading, figli di amedeo cassina, tel 7228 meda (milano)“. These tables were produced by Ca...
Iron
A wonderful 1960s ceramic tiled table by Dennis Townsend for Heals London
Located in London, GB
A wonderful 1960s ceramic tiled coffee table by Dennis Townsend, made up of 28 unique tiles that create a wonderful underwater fish design, mounted on a gilt metal base with floating...
Metal
Newly Refinished - Mid-Century Modern Sculpted Walnut Floating Top Side Table
Located in Los Angeles, CA
:) This expertly refinished Mid-Century Modern sculpted walnut side table captures the elegance of 1960s American design.
Walnut
Leather Side Table with Glass Top by Tito Agnoli for Matteo Grassi, 1970s
By Tito Agnoli
Located in Chicago, IL
A Mid Century Italian side table designed by Tito Agnoli for Matteo Grassi in the 1970s. This classic table features a steel frame clad in chocolate brown leather with stitch detaili...
Leather, Glass
Polished Stainless Steel and Glass Cocktail Table by J. Wade Beam for Brueton
By J. Wade Beam, Brueton
Located in Palm Springs, CA
This floating glass and stainless steel cocktail or coffee table is designed by, J. Wade Beam for Brueton. A new 3/4 inch blade cut beveled glass top insets into the angled polis...
Stainless Steel
1970s Italian Design Urban Geometric Iron Satin & Crystal Clear Long Sofa Table
Located in New York, NY
Modern Italian fine design coffee / end table, rare for its long size, entirely handcrafted in Italy, high quality of construction and minimalist yet efficient design typical of the ...
Crystal, Iron
Midcentury Acid Etched Cocktail "Chan Series" Table by Philip and Kelvin LaVerne
By Philip and Kelvin LaVerne
Located in New York, NY
This stunning and iconic cocktail table was realized in the United States by the legendary midcentury designers- the LaVerne brothers, circa 1960. Handcrafted in a combination of pol...
Bronze, Pewter
Midcentury Acid Etched Cocktail "Chan Series" Table by Philip and Kelvin LaVerne
By Philip and Kelvin LaVerne
Located in New York, NY
This stunning and iconic cocktail table was realized in the United States by the legendary midcentury designers- the LaVerne brothers, circa 1960. Handcrafted in a combination of pol...
Bronze, Pewter
A Pair of Rectangular Branco and Preto Side Tables in Caviuna Wood, Brazil 1960s
By Branco & Preto
Located in Utrecht, NL
Designed in a rational and geometric way, this pair of handmade Branco and Preto side tables have an open and elegant appearance. Both tables are made of a combination of solid and ...
Wood, Glass
Modernage Two-Tier Mid-Century Cloud Coffee Table
By Gilbert Rohde
Located in Van Nuys, CA
Modernage two-tier "Cloud" coffee table. The table has a solid wood base with ebonized legs and outer edge, which fades into a rich warm wood grain. Floating above the wood is a thic...
Brass
Sold|$3,000
Greta Grossman Walnut Bench
By Glenn of California, Greta Magnusson Grossman
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Greta Grossman for Glenn of California walnut bench or coffee table. This rare example features a floating walnut top with beautiful grain and turned walnut pillar legs. Condition...
Walnut
Long John Bench By Edward Wormley
By Edward Wormley, Dunbar Furniture
Located in Sagaponack, NY
An elegant and masterfully simple low table or bench by Edward Wormley having a top of joined and grooved slats of walnut on bentwood hairpin legs and a single floating drawer.
Peter Ghyczy glass bronze rectangular coffeetable
By Peter Ghyczy
Located in Zevenaar, NL
This beautiful, original design coffee table made of thick glass was designed by Peter Ghyczy and manufactured by Ghyczy in the 1970s. It is a XL rectangular model of the t15 series ...
Bronze
Sold|$2,500
Milo Baughman Floating Curved Sofa End Table
By Milo Baughman
Located in Denton, TX
White satin lacquer over wood atop Lucite support bars with curved front drawer Perfect for curved sofa. Can also be used as a coffee table
Wood
Expertly Restored- Mid-Century Italian Modern Travertine & Sculpted Side Tables
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Price for pair _____________________________________ This pair of Mid-Century Italian Modern side tables brings together sculpted walnut and original Italian travertine in a way that...
Stone, Travertine
Iconic Mid-Century "Module" Nesting Tables by Gerald Easden in Teak, c.1960s
By Module, Gerald Easden
Located in TORQUAY, AU
An iconic and authentic example of Australian mid-century design, this nest of three graduating tables was designed by the celebrated Gerald Easden for Module in Melbourne, circa 196...
Teak
Pair of Mid Century Campaign Style Walnut One Drawer End Tables on Metal Bases
Located in Ft. Lauderdale, FL
Designed as floating brass mounted walnut units on dark coffee colored metal bases these end tables are both classic and modern. They can be used both as end tables and night stands.
Metal, Brass
Mid-19th Century English Full Size Bagatelle Coffee Table
Located in Chapel Hill, NC
Mid-19th century full size Bagatelle game now on custom coffee table height stand, English.
Wood
Minimalist Floating Platform Bench or Coffee Table, Newly Restored
Located in Dallas, TX
This versatile piece is a must for any space, use it as a coffee table or bench. Similar to designs by Milo Baughman for Thayer Coggin, Harvey Probber, Adrian Pearsall for Craft Asso...
Wood
Vintage Mid Century Walnut Slat Bench Coffee Table
By Paul McCobb
Located in San Diego, CA
Beautiful Walnut Vintage Mid Century Slat Bench and Coffee table. This beautiful vintage piece is iconic mid-century as it is current.
Walnut
Harvey Probber Bench/Coffee Table with Floating Brass Rail and Brass Feet Sabots
By Harvey Probber
Located in Southampton, NJ
Beautiful 1950s Harvey Probber bench that can also be used as a coffee table. A stunning early example of some of Probber's best design.
Brass
1968 Milo Baughman Thayer Coggin Platform Sofa Coffee Table Mid-Century Modern
By Thayer Coggin, Milo Baughman
Located in Dayton, OH
1968 Milo Baughman for Thayer Koggin platform floating sofa and coffee table. Table number 474 with rosewood top and black base. Grey upholstery. #24649 Condition Good vin...
Rosewood
Vintage Modern Chrome and Glass Console Table
By Milo Baughman
Located in Trenton, NJ
Clean lines and a streamlined form make this table an ideal fit for mid-century modern, Art Deco, or even contemporary spaces.
Metal
Restored Rattan Stacked Base Cocktail Table W/ Smoked Glass Top
Located in Van Nuys, CA
This four-pole rattan coffee table has a stacked rattan round base. The four rattan poles organically branch outward to a circular top made of a single piece of bent rattan. The sm...
Rattan
Mid-Century Green Rex Lounge Chair and Coffee Table Design by Niko Kralj, 60s
By Niko Kralj, Stol Kamnik
Located in Lucija, SI
The "REX" Chair is a Scandinavian design, inspired wooden chair design that is included in the collection of the Museum of Modern Art MOMA in New York City and was designed by Sloven...
Beech, Plywood
Custom Quatrefoil Dining Table Base in Polished Brass by Refine Limited
By Karl Springer, Mastercraft
Located in New York, NY
We also do custom sizes, shapes, etc. We can produce coffee or Cocktail Tables, side tables, pedestals, floating nightstands, floating consoles, and several configurations of dining ...
Brass, Metal, Bronze
Sold|$15,990
Samson Berman Floating seating arrangement
By Samson Berman
Located in South Charleston, WV
Samson Berman studio, NY, USA, circa 1955. Integrated illuminated tandem chair platform. One of a kind encapsulating the Modernist era fully and unlike anything you have seen before....
Walnut
Long Walnut Bench / Coffee Table on White Base
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Gorgeous and elegant long table. Top slab executed in stunning vibrant walnut. Top has been oiled to enhance the lustrous color and grain texture of the walnut. Base painted white gi...
Walnut
Milo Baughman Style Two-Piece Floating Burl Credenza
By Milo Baughman
Located in Culver City, CA
This two-piece Milo Baughman style burl wood credenza is simply divine! Using French cleats, this wall mounted credenza is bound to bring a touch of warmth and modernism to any envir...
Burl
1960s Danish Teak Coffee Table by France & Son
By France & Søn
Located in Victoria, BC
This 1960s Danish teak coffee table by France & Son exudes an air of captivating elegance with its "floating" appearance atop the base. The cleverly designed legs sport subtly concav...
Teak
1960s Danish Solid Teak Coffee Table by Peter Hvidt
By Peter Hvidt
Located in Victoria, BC
We are delighted to unveil this captivating coffee table, a creation by the renowned designer Peter Hvidt for France & Son, dating back to the 1960s. The surface of this masterpiece ...
Teak
Midcentury Modern Desk in Hardwood & White Top by Jorge Zalszupin, 1970
By Jorge Zalszupin
Located in New York, NY
This fun desk would look great in any mid-century modern, or post-modern type environment.
Formica, Hardwood
Sold|$4,055
Archie Shine dining set
By Archie Shine, Robert Heritage
Located in Seaford, GB
Mid-Century Rosewood Hamilton Dining Suite Table, Chairs, Sideboard & Coffee Table by Robert Heritage for Archie Shine Enhance your home with a Mid-Century Rosewood Hamilton Dining ...
Rosewood
Johs Aasbjerg Model 120 Teak Coffee Table or Bench
By Johannes Aasbjerg, Excellent Furniture Co.
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A large slab coffee table by Danish designer Johannes “Johs” Aasbjerg for his company Excellent Furniture. The 120 table is the largest iteration of a highly customizable design, wit...
Steel
Gray Velvet Milo Baughman Style Rounded Back Floating Chrome Sofa
By Milo Baughman
Located in Culver City, CA
Available right now I have this gorgeous Milo Baughman style chrome and velvet upholstered sofa. This sofa has been freshly recovered in a plush gray cotton velvet and is absolutely ...
Stainless Steel
1960s Dutch Rob Parry Gelderland Minimalist Sofa & 2 Armchairs inc. Coffee Table
By Gelderland, Rob Parry
Located in London, England
1960s, midcentury, Minimalist, modern, designed sofa, with two armchairs and matching coffee table designed by Rob Parry and manufactured for Gelderland in the Netherlands. This i...
Steel
Sold|$2,305 / set
Mid Century Robert Heritage Dining Chairs By Archie Shine
By Archie Shine, Robert Heritage
Located in Seaford, GB
The enclosed upholstery over the frame makes them appear to be floating on the lower frame. Robert Heritage - Designer The beautiful long coffee table is from the 'Hamilton Rosewoo...
Rosewood
Vintage Turkish Angora Blanket Rug with Mid-Century Modern Style
Located in Dallas, TX
It would also make a lovely accent next to a buffet in a dining room or behind the sofa table in the living room. Well-suited for fashion-forward homes, eclectic interiors, and a var...
Wool, Angora
Vintage Turkish Oushak Rug with Retro Mid-Century Modern Style
Located in Dallas, TX
52409 Vintage Turkish Oushak Rug with Retro Mid-Century Modern Style 03'06 x 05'04. This hand-knotted wool vintage Turkish Oushak rug features an off-center hooked diamond medallion ...
Wool
Windsor Sectional Sofa Couch and End Tables Set, Milo Baughman Style 11-Piece
By Milo Baughman
Located in Chattanooga, TN
Made by the Futorian manufacturing company, the "Windsor" massive and magnificent. This 1980s Milo Baughman style 11-piece living room group will inspire you to design the interior a...
Fabric, Walnut
Jean Paul Gaultier Edition 'Mah Jong' Sofa by Roche Bobois / Hans Hopfer, France
By Roche Bobois, Hans Hopfer, Jean Paul Gaultier
Located in Pijnacker, Zuid-Holland
Very rare Jean Paul Gaultier edition Mah Jong sofa by Hans Hopfer for Roche Bobois. Jean Paul Gaultier specially designed the fabrics for the Roche Bobois 'Mah Jong' sofa. The Gault...
Fabric, Foam
Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style, which emerged primarily in the years following World War II, is characterized by pieces that were conceived and made in an energetic, optimistic spirit by creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living.
ORIGINS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS
VINTAGE MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
The mid-century modern era saw leagues of postwar American architects and designers animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist International-style architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the 1930s by Philip Johnson and others. New building techniques, such as “post-and-beam” construction, allowed the International-style schemes to be realized on a small scale in open-plan houses with long walls of glass.
Materials developed for wartime use became available for domestic goods and were incorporated into mid-century modern furniture designs. Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, who had experimented extensively with molded plywood, eagerly embraced fiberglass for pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair, respectively.
Architect, writer and designer George Nelson created with his team shades for the Bubble lamp using a new translucent polymer skin and, as design director at Herman Miller, recruited the Eameses, Alexander Girard and others for projects at the legendary Michigan furniture manufacturer.
Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were repurposed too: The Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs using surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.
The Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by celebrated manufacturer Knoll, a chief influencer in the rise of modern design in the United States, thanks to the work of Florence Knoll, the pioneering architect and designer who made the firm a leader in its field. The seating that Knoll created for office spaces — as well as pieces designed by Florence initially for commercial clients — soon became desirable for the home.
As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century furniture designers caught the spirit.
Classically oriented creators such as Edward Wormley, house designer for Dunbar Inc., offered such pieces as the sinuous Listen to Me chaise; the British expatriate T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings switched gears, creating items such as the tiered, biomorphic Mesa table. There were Young Turks such as Paul McCobb, who designed holistic groups of sleek, blond wood furniture, and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in minimalist teak dining tables and lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.
Generations turn over, and mid-century modern remains arguably the most popular style going. As the collection of vintage mid-century modern chairs, dressers, coffee tables and other furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and elsewhere on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.
As a practical focal point in your living area, antique and vintage coffee tables and cocktail tables are an invaluable addition to any interior.
Low tables that were initially used as tea tables or coffee tables have been around since at least the mid- to late-1800s. Early coffee tables surfaced in Victorian-era England, likely influenced by the use of tea tables in Japanese tea gardens. In the United States, furniture makers worked to introduce low, long tables into their offerings as the popularity of coffee and “coffee breaks” took hold during the late 19th century and early 20th century.
It didn’t take long for coffee tables and cocktail tables to become a design staple and for consumers to recognize their role in entertaining no matter what beverages were being served. Originally, these tables were as simple as they are practical — as high as your sofa and made primarily of wood. In recent years, however, metal, glass and plastics have become popular in coffee tables and cocktail tables, and design hasn’t been restricted to the conventional low profile, either.
Visionary craftspeople such as Paul Evans introduced bold, geometric designs that challenge the traditional idea of what a coffee table can be. The elongated rectangles and wide boxy forms of Evans’s desirable Cityscape coffee table, for example, will meet your needs but undoubtedly prove imposing in your living space.
If you’re shopping for an older coffee table to bring into your home — be it an antique Georgian-style coffee table made of mahogany or walnut with decorative inlays or a classic square mid-century modern piece comprised of rosewood designed by the likes of Ettore Sottsass — there are a few things you should keep in mind.
Both the table itself and what you put on it should align with the overall design of the room, not just by what you think looks fashionable in isolation. According to interior designer Tamara Eaton, the material of your vintage coffee table is something you need to consider. “With a glass coffee table, you also have to think about the surface underneath, like the rug or floor,” she says. “With wood and stone tables, you think about what’s on top.”
Find the perfect centerpiece for any room, no matter what your personal furniture style on 1stDibs — shop Art Deco coffee tables, travertine coffee tables and other antique and vintage coffee tables and cocktail tables today.
Whether you’re just moving in or ready to give your home a makeover, our guide will give you pointers on tables that are fitting for every room, nook and hallway.
Our feed is filled with the world's most beautiful spaces. See the rooms our followers have deemed the best of the best this month.
The Louisiana-born and -bred architect talks to 1stdibs about the art of making timeless places that matter.
The Palm Springs interior decorator developed a mid-century style that defined the vacation homes of celebrities and other notables, including Bob Hope and Lucille Ball.
The houses from this New York studio cloak modernist tendencies within what are often more traditional trappings.