$5,500
H 35.88 in W 44.5 in D 22 in
French Louis XVI 18th Century Painted Two-Drawer Commode with Fluted Accents
Located in Atlanta, GA
accents and bronze hardware. Born in France at the end of King Louis XVI's reign, this painted commode
Wood
$5,850
H 39 in W 48.75 in D 24.75 in
French Empire 19th Century Painted Wood Four-Drawer Commode with Gilt Busts
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French Empire style painted wood four-drawer commode from the 19th century with ebonized columns
Wood
Unavailable
H 61.5 in W 37.5 in D 20.75 in
Antique French Regency Style Original Paint Decorated Gilt Accented Tall Chest
Located in Parkesburg, PA
Features French Regency style early 20th century, outstanding high quality finish over mahogany, 4
Mahogany
Sold
H 33.5 in W 44.75 in D 20.25 in
French Neoclassic Period Painted Wood Chest with Marble Top and Brass Accents
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French period Neoclassical commode, with brass accents and marble top, from the early 19th
Marble
Sold
H 18.5 in W 39.5 in D 17.5 in
Vintage Wooden Blanket Chest Trunk French Country Style Red Green Paint
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Vintage wooden blanket chest trunk French country style red green paint. Item features bun feet
Iron
Sold
H 34.25 in W 49.5 in D 23 in
French Grey Marble and Wood Chest of Three Drawers with Gold Accents
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French 19th century wood carved chest of drawers with marble top. This exquisite French antique
Marble, Metal
Sold
H 35 in W 51 in D 24 in
French 19th Century Dark Chest of Drawers with Faux Marble and Brass Accents
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French 19th century chest of drawers with faux marble top. This handsome French chest has one
Brass
Sold
H 35.25 in W 44.75 in D 22.75 in
19th Century French Handsome Marble-Top Wood Chest of Drawers with Gold Accents
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French, 19th century wood carved chest of drawers with marble top. This exquisite French antique
Marble
Sold
H 33.25 in W 47.25 in D 20.25 in
19th Century French Painted Wood Chest with Brass Beaded Trim and Accents
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French painted wood chest of three drawers with brass accents from the late 19th century. This
Brass
Sold
H 32.75 in W 41.25 in D 19.25 in
French Vintage Custom Painted Wood Commode w/Diamond Trim Accents & Brass Feet
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French painted wood chest of drawers, circa 1960's. This vintage French commode features two
Wood
Sold
H 30 in W 47.5 in D 23.5 in
French Empire Style 19th Century Painted Four-Drawer Commode with Gilded Busts
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French Empire style painted wood four-drawer commode from the 19th century with ebonized columns
Wood
Sold
H 30.25 in W 38 in L 30.25 in
Antique French Walnut Veneer Chest of Drawers with Black Painted Accents
Located in Houston, TX
This chest of drawers features walnut veneer and painted black accents and simple decorative
Walnut, Paint
Sold
H 36 in W 53 in D 24 in
French Painted Pine Three-Drawer Commode with Marbleized Top and Fluted Accents
Located in Atlanta, GA
century. This French painted chest features a rectangular planked faux-marble top sitting above three long
Pine
19th Century Danish Gustavian Chest of Drawers
Located in Huntington, NY
A Danish Gustavian chest of drawers with intricately carved details. Chest top has dental trim around three sides. Front corners have detailed neoclassical column carvings. Three lar...
Brass, Iron
$4,900 / item
H 34 in W 86 in D 42 in
Custom Made Modern English Arm Sofa in Performance Linen Velvet - 86"
By Bloom Home Inc
Located in Old Town Orange, CA
This beautiful english arm sofa has a modern twist, with its single bench cushion, and beautiful curved apron sides. It’s upholstered in a Linen Velvet Performance fabric. Shown in...
Linen, Velvet
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
20th Century Swedish Gustavian Style Chest of Drawers
Located in Atlanta, GA
A refined 20th-century Swedish Gustavian-style chest of drawers, showcasing the timeless elegance and craftsmanship of this iconic design. The piece is painted in a soft, muted gray ...
Pine
Pair of Swedish Gustavian Style Chests of Drawers
Located in Atlanta, GA
A classic pair of Gustavian-style chests of drawers crafted from solid pine and featuring a distinctive broken-front design. These elegant pieces are painted in a warm gray tone, bea...
Pine
$2,000 / item
H 8.5 in Dm 17.5 in
Vintage Inspired Handcrafted Fluted Farmhouse Porcelain Pendant Light
By DBO Home
Located in Sharon, CT
Classic, elegant, with a perfectly imperfect touch. We just love our new porcelain Parasol Fluted Pendants. Inspired by a vintage pie cover, we designed them to hang over our kitchen...
Brass
19th Century French Napoleon III Walnut Daybed or Bench
Located in Rio Vista, CA
Distinctive 19th century walnut daybed or bench seat made in the grand French Napoleon III period. The walnut frame features large round padded bolsters on each end decorated with st...
Fabric, Walnut
Neoclassical Wrought Iron & Bronze Bench, France 1950's
By Alberto Giacometti
Located in New York, NY
Elegant bench in patinated wrought iron and bronze. The sabots are reminiscent of Giacometti's work for Jean-Michel Frank. 3 benches are available; the price is for one.
Bronze, 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
$7,663 / item
H 39.38 in W 9.85 in D 31.5 in
Parchment, Brass and Glass Table Lamp by Diego Mardegan for Glustin Luminaires
By Diego Mardegan
Located in Saint-Ouen, IDF
Ventola table lamp by the artist Diego Mardegan exclusively for Glustin Luminaires. Beautiful two ways shade made of a brass structure, parchemin paper and waxed fabric hold by an...
Brass
$6,950
H 35.25 in W 45.25 in D 20.5 in
Italian Louis XVI 19th Century Walnut Two-Drawer Commode with Inlay
Located in Atlanta, GA
An Italian Louis XVI style walnut commode from the 19th century with two drawers and inlaid banding. This exquisite Italian Louis XVI style walnut commode from the 19th century showc...
Brass
$5,950
H 35.25 in W 50 in D 21.75 in
Italian Neoclassical Period 1790s Walnut and Mahogany Commode with Cross Banding
Located in Atlanta, GA
An Italian Neoclassical period walnut and mahogany four-drawer commode from circa 1790 with cross banding, classical hardware and tapered legs. This exquisite Italian Neoclassical pe...
Mahogany, Walnut
$6,860
H 34 in W 50.5 in D 23 in
19th C. Neoclassic French Commode w/Original Marble Top & Brass Hardware
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French Neoclassical commode with its original marble top from the 19th century. This antique chest from France features a rectangular-shaped marble top, with pronounced rounded fro...
Marble, Brass
$4,850
H 31.5 in W 34.75 in D 18.25 in
Swedish Gustavian Style 1890s Chest with Two Drawers and Grey Painted Outlines
Located in Atlanta, GA
A Swedish Gustavian style painted chest circa 1890 with two drawers, carved fluted molding, light grey painted outlines and tapered legs. Embrace the enduring charm of Nordic design ...
Wood
$11,900
H 33.75 in W 41.25 in D 22.25 in
19th Century Cream-White Italian Arte Povera Pine Commode - Antique Tuscan Chest
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A cream-white, antique Italian single commode in the Arte Povera technique, made of hand crafted painted Pinewood in good condition. The Tuscan cabinet, cupboard is composed with a b...
Metal
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.
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