George I Style Black & Gold Chinoiserie Secretary Desk With Red Interior
Located in LOS ANGELES, CA
George I Style Black & Gold Chinoiserie Secretary Desk With Red Interior.
1990s American George I Secretaires
Wood
George I Style Black & Gold Chinoiserie Secretary Desk With Red Interior
Located in LOS ANGELES, CA
George I Style Black & Gold Chinoiserie Secretary Desk With Red Interior.
Wood
Rare Gunnel Nyman for Boman Secretaire in Pyramid Mahogany
By Gunnel Nyman, Boman OY
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Gunnel Anita Gustafsson-Nyman for Oy Boman Ab, secretaire, pyramid mahogany, Finland, ca. 1937 The Finnish artist Gunnel Anita Gustafsson-Nyman (1909–1948) is best known for her gl...
Brass
Late 18th-Century Swedish Secretary, c. 1780-90
Located in Kastrup, DK
Beautiful Gustavian secrétaire desk / bureau crafted in oak and finished in a decorative light blue hue with an attractive patina. The piece is constructed in two sections, with an ...
Brass, Iron
George III Mahogany Secretary
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
George III mahogany secretary, circa 1800. The pediment with dental moldings, two glass doors with through mullions, a slant top, desk interior with central prospect door flanked by ...
Brass
$1,880Sale Price|20% Off
Chinoiserie Black Lacquered Drop Front Secretary Desk With Bookcase Hutch
Located in Elkhart, IN
A gorgeous Georgian Chinoiserie style bureau with drop front secretary desk and bookcase hutch top In the manner of Jasper Furniture Company USA, Late 20th Century Black lacquered...
Brass
$2,625Sale Price|30% Off
Antique Georgian Flame Mahogany Slant Front Secretary Writing Desk Bureau
Located in Dayton, OH
Exquisite antique early 19th century secretary writing storage desk. Made of flame mahogany featuring Georgian styling with three large dovetailed drawers and a drop front that open...
Birdseye Maple, Mahogany
Mid-Century Georgian Style Red & Gilt Chinoiserie Secretary Desk
Located in Kennesaw, GA
This is a Chinese red Georgian style chinoiserie secretary. It is a mid-century find that is heavily painted with pastoral scenes and go,t accents. It is most likely American and is ...
Wood
Gustavian Black-Painted Bureau Cabinet, Sweden
Located in Kastrup, DK
Elegant Gustavian black-painted bureau cabinet in three sections, crafted with fine classical detailing and beautiful patina. The upper section features a pair of glazed panel door...
Brass
$770Sale Price|30% Off
English Chippendale Style Painted Goddard Chest Secretary Writing Desk
Located in Dayton, OH
Antique circa 1930s Goddard chest / writing desk featuring a drop front door that opens to multiple cubbies, three drawers and paw / claw feet. Yellowin...
Hardwood, Paint
18th Century Swedish Baroque Slant Front Secretaire
Located in Charleston, SC
18th century Swedish secretaire, from Baroque period, circa 1750 in original gorgeous blue/green patinated color with slant front desk with interior features numerous small drawers ...
Bronze
Antique Swedish Biedermeier Natural Pine Drop Front Desk with Drawers and Keys
Located in Centennial, CO
An absolutely stunning antique Swedish Biedermeier style natural pine drop front secretary desk with elaborate insert containing eleven drawers and a door for storage. Note the gorge...
Brass
Gustavian Style Painted Light Blue Secretary Desk Cabinet
Located in LOS ANGELES, CA
Gustavian Style Painted Light Blue Secretary Desk Cabinet
Wood
$1,120Sale Price|30% Off
Jasper Early American Colonial Style Petite Maple Secretary Desk & Bookcase 72"
Located in Dayton, OH
A Petite Secretary Desk & Bookcase by Jasper Cabinet Company of Indiana. Circa 1980s. Features a maple case crafted in colonial styling with an...
Maple
Italian Venetian Pink Chinoiserie Secretary Desk Cabinet
Located in LOS ANGELES, CA
Italian Venetian Pink Chinoiserie Secretary Desk Cabinet. It is beautifully hand painted with yellow inside and pink outside. It comes apart in two p...
Wood
Queen Anne Period Early 18th Century Walnut Bureau
Located in Bedfordshire, GB
An Absolutely Stunning Early 18th Century Queen Anne Period Walnut Bureau, Or Writing Desk, In Good Untouched Condition Retaining Wonderful Rich Colour And Patina, Having Superbly Fi...
Walnut
Parma Blue Doge Secretary with Gold Chinoiserie Dresser
By Porte Italia
Located in Milan, IT
The Parma Blue Doge secretary showcases exquisite chinoiserie artistry with delicate golden figures and serene landscapes. Its elegant double-door top reveals an interior in calming ...
Wood
19th Century Venetian Lacquer Painted Secretary Bookcase Desk
Located in Rio Vista, CA
An elegant and imposing late 19th century two-part Italian secretary bookcase cabinet or desk crafted in the Venetian and Rococo Revival period styles. The piece features a beautiful...
Wood, Lacquer, Paint, Glass
$2,450Sale Price|30% Off
Antique Early 19th Century Plantation Desk Secretary + Bookcase Hutch Cabinet
Located in Dayton, OH
An exceptional mid to early 19th century primitive American Plantation writing desk / hutch / cupboard / cabinet. Made from Pine and Poplar with a cherry finish. Featuring two piec...
Poplar, Pine
Period Gustavian Slant-Front Desk with Black Exterior and Blue Interior
Located in Atlanta, GA
A beautifully proportioned Swedish Gustavian period slant front desk, retaining a wonderfully aged black-painted exterior and opening to reveal a striking powder blue interior. The c...
Pine
Biedermeier Secretary in Walnut, Austria, circa 1830
Located in Greding, DE
Exceptional Biedermeier secretary in walnut featuring a striking book-matched veneer pattern across the front. The fall-front writing surface displays a segment-shaped panel above a ...
Carrara Marble, Brass
George II Style Black & Gold Lacquer Chinoiserie Secretary Desk Bookcase
Located in LOS ANGELES, CA
George II Style Black & Gold Lacquer Chinoiserie Secretary Desk Bookcase.
Wood, Giltwood, Lacquer
Mid 20th Century, Danis Modern Oak Drop‑Front Secretary Desk / Bureau
Located in Odense, DK
An elegant mid 20th century Danish oak drop‑front secretary desk / bureau featuring a classic fall‑front writing surface with beautiful, decorative brass handles that enhance its vin...
Brass
Danish Gustavian Green Secretary Cabinet, 1780s.
Located in Asaa, DK
Danish Gustavian Green Secretary, 1780s. Extremely rare of the period Gustavian two-part secretaire cabinet made by master carpenter in southern Denmark circa 1780. This genuine an...
Pine
Antique French Secretaire / Bureau in Mahogany
Located in Leicester, GB
Beautiful Antique French flame Mahogany secretaire/bureau/cabinet. The inside is lined with maple and finished with ebonized black details. The cabinet has got lots of charm and char...
Mahogany
Swedish Gustavian Slant-Front Secretary in Original Cream Paint, 19th Century
Located in Atlanta, GA
A refined Swedish Gustavian slant-front secretary from the early 19th century, presented in a beautifully aged original cream-painted finish with soft green undertones inside. The cl...
Pine
French Art Deco Secretary Cabinet by André Arbus
By André Arbus
Located in grand Lancy, CH
Andre Arbus Sloping mahogany secreter with two drawers and a drop-leaf door. Sycamore maple interior with six small drawers and a central niche lined with parchment; gilt bronze knob...
Brass
French 19th Century Louis Philippe Style Commode with Secretary
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
A gorgeous 19th century French mahogany secretary style desk, designed as a classic Louis Philippe commode incorporating the work surface and storage compartments into the top “drawe...
Marble, Iron
19th Century Empire Drop-Front Oak Secretary Desk or Abattant, Chest France
Located in Miami, FL
Secretaire a abattant, France circa 1820, Biedermeier period. The outside with fall front and two drawers flanked by two ebonized columns shows a beautiful oak veneer design. The woo...
Bronze
Late 18th-Century Scandinavian Two-Part Secretary, Circa 1790
Located in Atlanta, GA
This rare Scandinavian two-part secretary dates to the late 18th century and exemplifies the refined craftsmanship of Northern European furniture from the Gustavian era. The upper se...
Glass, Wood
French Empire Secrétaire á Abattant
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
A handsome 19th century French Empire secrétaire à abattant made of richly figured, bookmatched walnut. This desk has a black fossil marble top resting above a hidden drawer, free of hardware and opening by a shallow groove on the bottom of the drawer front. Below is a fold-front door revealing a fitted interior with a functional writing surface, inset with worn green leather with gold tooling. The interior has an open storage shelf flanked by Empire style columns over a set of six drawers of varying sizes. The writing surface is supported with rounded brass hinges. Below are three easy to use drawers...
Marble, Brass
$1,596Sale Price|20% Off
Chinoiserie Black Lacquered Drop Front Secretary Desk With Bookcase Hutch
Located in Elkhart, IN
A gorgeous Georgian Chinoiserie style bureau with drop front secretary desk and bookcase hutch top In the manner of Jasper Furniture Company USA, Late 20th Century Black lacquered...
Brass
English Arts and Crafts Secretary Bookcase, ca. 1910s
Located in Meulebeke, BE
An elegant and finely crafted example of early 20th‑century British design, this English Arts and Crafts secretary bookcase from the 1910s. I...
Copper
George III Bureau Desk or Secretary Chest from the 18th Century
Located in Austin, TX
A fine George III slant top desk or bureau secretary chest of elm, oak and padouk woods, c.1780 - an inlaid slant front drops to reveal a series of small drawers and document compart...
Metal, Brass
George II Style Burl Walnut & Oak Slant-Front Diminutive Secretary Bookcase
Located in Bridgeport, CT
A George II style burl walnut and oak slant front secretary bookcase with the upper case featuring a molded crown over a wide frieze, with a large single cabinet door with brass shie...
Brass
George III Double Secretary Bookcase of Mahogany
Located in Austin, TX
A fine English double secretary bookcase of mahogany from the late Georgian era, c.1780, featuring a crown moulded top with two astragal glazed doors, each side opening to four long ...
Brass, Metal
Early 19th Century German Biedermeier Secretaire Desk with Secret Compartment
Located in Greven, DE
Antique Berlin Biedermeier secretary in mahogany Berlin Mahogany a.o. around 1825 Dimensions: H x W x D: 169 x 101 x 53 cm Description: When closed, this piece of furniture presen...
Mahogany, Maple
Victorian Mahogany Fall Front Secretaire Desk, Antique, 1890
Located in Leicester, GB
This is a wonderful English antique fall front secretary desk with Mahogany finish. The secretaire is elegantly designed with beautiful sculpted feet. Beautiful colour and patina to ...
Mahogany, Pine
$2,100Sale Price|30% Off
Adams Style Mahogany Half Cylinder Secretary Writing Desk Hutch Curio 92"
Located in Dayton, OH
A very large and impressive vintage Adams style half cylinder secretary desk / hutch featuring a mahogany finish with upper bookcase curio cabinet with fretwork doors supported by a ...
Mahogany
French 19th Century Ebonized & Inlay Secretary
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
This French Louis XVI style drop front secretary from the 1800s has impressive etched brass inlay on its exterior, which is made even more dramatic by the deep ebonized finish. The t...
Marble, Brass
Antique English Late Victorian Sheraton Revival Satin Wood Bureau 19th Century
By Angelica Kauffmann
Located in London, GB
This is a beautiful antique late Victorian Sheraton revival satin wood bureau, circa 1890 in date and hand painted in the manner of Angelica Kauffman. It has been made from the fin...
Brass
French Provincial Style Secretary Desk with Marquetry Inlays and Key
Located in Soquel, CA
French Provincial Style Walnut Secretary Desk with Marquetry Inlays and Key. Original Finish.
Walnut
Antique Austrian Flame Mahogany Biedermeier Secretary Desk Cabinet Chest 1860
Located in Portland, OR
A fine antique Austrian Biedermeier flame mahogany secretary chest, circa 1860. The cabinet having a stepped cornice with circular turned finial brackets at each corner, the top of the cabinet is fitted with a single locking drawer with an oval brass lockplate (key is present). Below is a locking fall front panel (key present) with a wavy edge in relief, the fall when open reveals a fitted interior with a recessed storage area flanked with a pair of ribbed columns and having a central locking door enclosing a single drawer and six drawers to each side with ivory pulls. The fall front has a green baize writing surface, below are a pair of cupboard doors with corresponding wavy recessed panels, to the interior is a single shelf and plenty of useful storage. The cabinet is raised on a plinth base with turned feet and corresponding circular turned finial brackets. Condition is excellent, the cabinet is made from the finest flame mahogany, this very elegant antique biedermeier secretary cabinet...
Mahogany
Danish Modern, Unique Handcrafted Oak Secretary Cabinet, Mid 20th Century
Located in Odense, DK
An elegant rare Danish oak secretary cabinet in Baroque style, crafted in the 1930s by a skilled Danish Cabinetmaker. The piece features a drop-front writing surface that opens to re...
Oak
Iconic vintage dutch design CU07 Cabinet by Cees Braakman for Pastoe
By Cees Braakman, Pastoe
Located in Meulebeke, BE
The Netherlands / CU07 cabinet / Pastoe / Cees Braakman / metal, teak / Vintage / Mid-century Highboard CU07 designed by the Dutch designer Cees Braakman in 1958 for Pastoe. This mo...
Metal
19th-Century Swedish Painted Secretary in Blue with White Highlights, circa 1830
Located in Atlanta, GA
A refined 19th-century Swedish secretary, beautifully painted in soft blue with subtle white highlights that accentuate its clean lines and understated Scandinavian elegance. The s...
Pine
19th Century Louis XVI Style Secretaire a Abattant
Located in Winter Park, FL
A late 19th century French Louis XVI style secrétaire à abattant, or drop front secretary desk, made with inlaid veneers of mahogany and various exotic woods. Original cast bronze ha...
Marble, Bronze
Antique German Biedermeier Secretaire, Cherrywood & Burlwood, c. 1820
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A 19th Century, antique German Biedermeier tall secretaire with a writing flap made of hand crafted shellac polished, partly veneered Cherrywood and Burlwood, in good condition. The ...
Metal, Brass
Antique English Fall Front Secretary Desk in Oak
Located in Meer, VAN
Antique Fall Front Secretary Desk in solid oak, England, late 18th to early 19th Century. This is a wonderful English antique fall front secretary desk in solid oak with brass fitti...
Brass
Gustavian Secretaire / Bureau 1780 - 1790
Located in Kastrup, DK
Gustavian secrétaire in two parts, crafted in oak with a grey-white finish and a beautiful patina. The piece is constructed in two sections, featuring a classic upper cabinet with d...
Brass, Iron
19th Century Swedish Mahogany Chiffonje, Writing Agency - Cabinet by Karl Johan
By Karl Johan
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A 19th Century, antique Swedish Biedermeier writing agency, secretary table made of hand crafted polished, partly veneered Mahogany with a writing flap, designed by Karl-Johan in goo...
Metal, Brass
Scandinavian 18th Century Bureau, c.1790
Located in Atlanta, GA
A refined Scandinavian bureau dating to circa 1790, crafted in pine with a beautifully aged painted finish that reflects the understated elegance of late 18th-century Northern Europe...
Wood
Early 19th Century Danish Black Painted Secretary Bureau
Located in Round Top, TX
Late 18th-century Danish bureau or secretary featuring a newer professionally applied black layered painted finish, lightly distressed to reveal natural oak beneath and suit the age ...
Brass
Writing cupboard from around 1800 hundered in pine, Sweden
Located in Atlanta, GA
A distinguished Swedish writing cupboard crafted in solid pine, dating to approximately 1800. The two-part form combines practical storage with a dedicated writing surface, reflectin...
Pine
English 19th Century Sheraton Secretary
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
A slender mahogany bureau bookcase with secretary desk, made in England, circa 1820. The secretary’s upper body is crowned with a broken pediment–a classic Sheraton feature–above gla...
Brass
19th Century Handcrafted Pine Swedish Writing Bureau with Dragged Paint
Located in Mckinney, TX
Classic Swedish provincial form with a beautifully timeworn presence. This slant-top bureau retains its dry-scraped white paint across the front, revealing soft undertones of earlier...
Pine, Paint
Federal Style Flame Mahogany Secretary Desk / Display Cabinet & Brass Eagle
Located in Kennesaw, GA
This is a beautiful inlaid flame mahogany Federal style secretary desk with tambour doors. It has two glass shelves. The body has several areas with inlaid satinwood designs. It date...
Glass, Mahogany
18th C Style George I Red Chinoiserie Decorated Secretary Desk by Burton-Ching
Located in LOS ANGELES, CA
18th C Style George I Red Chinoiserie Decorated Secretary Desk by Burton-Ching.
Wood
Tessellated Black Marble Brass Inlay Secretary Desk by Maitland Smith
Located in Houston, TX
Maitland Smith 20th Century tessellated black marble Secretary. This phenomenal and monumental cabinet is enrobed in polished black marble with ...
Malachite, Brass
$2,600Sale Price|20% Off
Antique Eastlake Chip Caved Walnut Barrel Roll Cylinder Secretary Desk c1890
Located in Big Flats, NY
***Reduced In-House Delivery Rates - Click on “Ask Seller” to Request a Quote*** Antique Eastlake Chip Caved Walnut Barrel Roll Cylinder Secretary Desk C1890. Measures - 87 1/2" x...
Walnut
Antique Georgian Mahogany Bookcase Secretary Collectors Doctors Cabinet 1790
Located in Portland, OR
A very rare antique George III English Mahogany secretary bookcase, with a fitted collector's or doctor's cabinet to the base, circa 1790. The bookcase in two sections; the top section with a flared cornice with a frieze of dentil molding below, the bookcase with twin glazed doors with intersecting curvilenear astragals, the doors enclosing a pair of adjustable shelves. The base having a deep drawer with a locking fall front desk, fitted with a tooled & gilded leather writing surface, and a fitted interior with pigeonholes with removable doors and drawers each fitted with an oval gilded name label. Below are a pair of locking doors enclosing an elaborately fitted interior; comprising one long shallow tray shaped drawer above a host of 13 drawers of various sizes, all with the original brass hardware and corresponding oval gilded name tag, to the left side is a file space. The secretary bookcase is raised on bracket feet with a shaped skirt, it is made from the finest figured Cuban mahogany, all original finish and hardware. Georgian bookcase secretaries...
Leather, Mahogany
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.