Napoleon Iii Gilt Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Pedestals and Columns
Ormolu
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Cabinets
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Decorative Dishes and Vide-...
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Table Lamps
Malachite, Bronze
Antique 1870s French Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Bronze, Enamel
Antique 1890s French Napoleon III Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Decorative Dishes and Vide-...
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Wall Mirrors
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Pedestals
Marble, Ormolu
Early 20th Century American Mantel Clocks
Bronze, Enamel
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Table Clocks and Desk Clocks
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Candelabras
Bronze
Antique 1840s French Napoleon III Inkwells
Metal, Bronze
Antique 1880s French Napoleon III Wall Lights and Sconces
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Candlesticks
Bronze
20th Century French Center Tables
Marble, Ormolu
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Cupboards
Marble, Ormolu
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Table Lamps
Marble, Ormolu
Antique 19th Century American Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Bronze, Enamel
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Cabinets
Multi-gemstone, Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Wall Lights and Sconces
Ormolu
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Credenzas
Ebony
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Enamel, Ormolu
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Candelabras
Ormolu
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century Napoleon III Planters, Cachepots and Jardinières
Onyx, Bronze, Enamel
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Commodes and Chests of Drawers
Agate, Marble, Ormolu
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Ormolu
Antique 19th Century French Neoclassical Revival Planters, Cachepots and...
Bronze
Antique 1860s French Napoleon III Candelabras
Bronze, Enamel
Antique 1870s French Napoleon III Jars
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Belle Époque Planters, Cachepots and Ja...
Griotte Marble, Bronze, Ormolu
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Buffets
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Belle Époque Cabinets
Brass, Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Cabinets
Ormolu
Antique 1860s French Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Scientific Instruments
Bronze, Brass
Antique 19th Century French Louis XV Porcelain
Bronze
Antique 1860s French George III Table Lamps
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Rococo Mantel Clocks
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Table Lamps
Marble, Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Porcelain
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Candelabras
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Mantel Clocks
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Table Lamps
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Inkwells
Marble, Bronze
Antique 19th Century Candelabras
Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Barware
Crystal, Bronze
Antique 1880s French Napoleon III Lanterns
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Candelabras
Marble, Bronze, Gold Leaf
Antique 1890s French Napoleon III Lanterns
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Napoleon III Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze
Antique 19th Century French Desks
Ormolu
- 1
- ...
Napoleon Iii Gilt Bronze For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much is a Napoleon Iii Gilt Bronze?
A Close Look at Napoleon-iii Furniture
Under Napoleon III’s rule, Paris underwent a great rebuilding overseen by Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann, which created grand avenues and lavish landmarks like the Paris Opera. Antique Napoleon III–style furniture was flamboyant and eclectic. It was also known as Second Empire style since it followed and referenced the Empire style of his uncle Napoleon I.
Developing from 1852–70, Napoleon III furniture was plush and ornate, matching the fashion for masked balls and socializing in salons. It borrowed freely from earlier French styles including Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI as well as aesthetics from around the world, from antiquity to Asian art. As writer Gustave Claudin remarked in 1867, the country’s architects worked in “a style which one would be tempted to call neo-Greco-Gothico-Pompadour-Pompeian.”
Napoleon III chairs were completely covered with velvet and lined with tassels; pouf footstools invited people to put up their feet. Sofas were upholstered with tapestries, and beds were adorned with gilt bronze and theatrical canopies. The addition of conservatories to homes led to new indoor-outdoor furniture, while the spirit of hygiene promoted by Baron Haussmann inspired bright, floral motifs.
Although the most ostentatious designs were for the elite, as seen in the Napoleon III apartments preserved in the Louvre, where red velvet, gilding and chandeliers create a cacophony of luxury, these trends influenced homes across classes as manufacturing made design increasingly accessible. Papier-mâché furniture allowed for elaborate shapes that would have been difficult to carve in wood. The malleable material was painted with chinoiserie patterns and decorative designs. It was mass-produced by factories such as Jennens and Bettridge with varnishing and mother-of-pearl inlays creating an effect reminiscent of Asian lacquer. (Surfaces that had been “japanned” — a specialty of Jennens and Bettridge — were intended to resemble lacquer work that was created in East Asia.)
Find a collection of antique Napoleon III decorative objects, tables, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.