Mercury Ball Lamp
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal, Nickel
Late 20th Century Unknown Modern Table Lamps
Chrome
Vintage 1980s French Floor Lamps
Brass
Antique 19th Century French Belle Époque Table Lamps
Bronze, Ormolu
People Also Browsed
21st Century and Contemporary American Victorian Mounted Objects
Stainless Steel
20th Century French Desks
Metal
Early 20th Century French Louis XV Commodes and Chests of Drawers
Ormolu
Antique 19th Century Italian Empire Console Tables
Mercury Glass, Mirror, Wood, Walnut, Giltwood
Vintage 1950s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Mercury Glass
Antique Early 19th Century English Regency Convex Mirrors
Giltwood, Mercury Glass
Mid-20th Century American Campaign End Tables
Walnut, Mahogany
Early 20th Century German Folk Art Historical Memorabilia
Wire
Antique 19th Century French Louis XVI Cabinets
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Louis XVI Side Tables
Marble, Brass, Bronze
Antique 1870s French Napoleon III Floor Lamps
Bronze
21st Century and Contemporary Japanese Furniture
Fabric, Acrylic, Yarn, Thread, Silk, Tapestry
Vintage 1970s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Art Glass
Late 20th Century European Space Age Armchairs
Upholstery, Ash
Vintage 1960s Mexican Mid-Century Modern Centerpieces
Mercury Glass
Vintage 1960s Italian Space Age Floor Lamps
Metal
Recent Sales
Vintage 1970s American Modern Table Lamps
2010s American Post-Modern Table Lamps
Cut Steel
Vintage 1960s Hollywood Regency Table Lamps
Mercury Glass, Silk, Wood
20th Century American Table Lamps
Mercury Glass, Wood, Glass
20th Century American Table Lamps
Brass
20th Century American Table Lamps
Nickel
Vintage 1980s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Brass
Vintage 1960s American Table Lamps
Chrome
20th Century American Table Lamps
Nickel
Vintage 1950s American Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1980s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Brass, Nickel
Vintage 1970s Italian Table Lamps
Silver
Mid-20th Century Hollywood Regency Table Lamps
Glass
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Glass
Vintage 1960s Czech Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Mercury Glass
Early 2000s Italian Art Deco Table Lamps
Mid-20th Century American Table Lamps
Brass
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Table Lamps
Metal
Vintage 1960s Modern Table Lamps
Metal
Antique Late 19th Century American Victorian Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Vintage 1930s American Table Lamps
Wood
Vintage 1950s American Table Lamps
Chrome
20th Century American Table Lamps
Vintage 1950s Floor Lamps
Early 20th Century American Table Lamps
Metal
20th Century Unknown Table Lamps
Finding the Right table-lamps for You
Well-crafted antique and vintage table lamps do more than provide light; the right fixture-and-table combination can add a focal point or creative element to any interior.
Proper table lamps have long been used for lighting our most intimate spaces. Perfect for lighting your nightstand or reading nook, table lamps play an integral role in styling an inviting room. In the years before electricity, lamps used oil. Today, a rewired 19th-century vintage lamp can still provide a touch of elegance for a study.
After industrial milestones such as mass production took hold in the Victorian era, various design movements sought to bring craftsmanship and innovation back to this indispensable household item. Lighting designers affiliated with Art Deco, which originated in the glamorous roaring ’20s, sought to celebrate modern life by fusing modern metals with dark woods and dazzling colors in the fixtures of the era. The geometric shapes and gilded details of vintage Art Deco table lamps provide an air of luxury and sophistication that never goes out of style.
After launching in 1934, Anglepoise lamps soon became a favorite among modernist architects and designers, who interpreted the fixture as “a machine for lighting,” just as Le Corbusier had reimagined the house as “a machine for living in.” The popular task light owed to a collaboration between a vehicle-suspension engineer by the name of George Carwardine and a West Midlands springs manufacturer, Herbert Terry & Sons.
Some mid-century modern table lamps, particularly those created by the likes of Joe Colombo and the legendary lighting artisans at Fontana Arte, bear all the provocative hallmarks associated with Space Age design. Sculptural and versatile, the Louis Poulsen table lamps of that period were revolutionary for their time and still seem innovative today.
If you are looking for something more contemporary, industrial table lamps are demonstrative of a newly chic style that isn’t afraid to pay homage to the past. They look particularly at home in any rustic loft space amid exposed brick and steel beams.
Before you buy a desk lamp or table lamp for your living room, consider your lighting needs. The Snoopy lamp, designed in 1967, or any other “banker’s lamp” (shorthand for the Emeralite desk lamps patented by H.G. McFaddin and Company), provides light at a downward angle that is perfect for writing, while the Fontana table lamp and the beloved Grasshopper lamp by Greta Magnusson-Grossman each yield a soft and even glow. Some table lamps require lampshades to be bought separately.
Whether it’s a classic antique Tiffany table lamp, a Murano glass table lamp or even a bold avant-garde fixture custom-made by a contemporary design firm, the right table lamp can completely transform a room. Find the right one for you on 1stDibs.
Read More
You Don’t Need a Fictional Fairy to Get This Real Pinocchio Lamp
Warm chalet style meets cool Bauhaus functionality in Pietro Cascella’s cleverly carved creation.
Why Is Italy Such a Hotbed of Cool Design?
Patrizio Chiarparini of Brooklyn’s Duplex gallery sheds light on the lasting legacy of Italy’s postwar furniture boom.
With a High-Tech Flagship and Cool Collabs, Lladró Is Breaking the Mold for Porcelain Production
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.
Christopher Tennant’s Lamps and Dioramas Evoke Sunny Days and Seaside Locales
The former magazine editor blends elements of the Far East and America’s eastern shores, bringing wit and delight to his handmade, upcycled designs.
Paavo Tynell’s Snowflake Chandelier Warms Up Any Room
This circa 1950 piece by the legendary Finnish lighting designer spent the past several decades in a family's home in Michigan.
NASA Parachutes Inspired Lighting Designer Bec Brittain’s New Collection
In "Paraciphers," now on view at Emma Scully Gallery in New York, Brittain introduces works that were more than a decade in the making.
This Handsome Leather Pendant Light Is Crafted Using Saddle-Making Techniques
The Doma by L’Aviva Home nods to Colombia’s equestrian heritage.
Celebrate Spring Year-Round with This Lush Murano-Glass Chandelier
Hand-blown glass makes the Italian fixture glow like dew-covered leaves in the sun.