Pair of 19th Century Swedish Painted Chest of Drawers
Located in Charleston, SC
A pair of 19th century Swedish Gustavian style chests with marbleized wooden tops. Drawers with raised panels and bronze hardwares. Canted corner post with dentil molding under the s...
Bronze
Rare Pair of 19th Century Painted Swedish Bedside Chests
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Fine quality pair of bedside chest of drawers, circa 1870. 3 drawers with fluted detail, brass ring handles and key plates. Canted corners with further fluted detailing and app...
Pine
Pair of 19th Century Black Painted Chest of Drawers
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Pair of 19th century black painted chest of drawers circa 1880. Good quality pair of Swedish pine commodes. Presented in a later black painted colour scheme. Rectangular tops w...
Pine, Paint
Pair of 19th century blue painted chest of drawers
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Pair of 19th century painted chest of drawers circa 1880. Good quality pair of swedish painted commodes that will work well in multiple rooms around the home. Rectangular tops with...
Pine, Paint
Pair of Carved 19th Century Swedish Chest of Drawers
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Good quality grey painted chest of drawers, circa 1870. Stepped top with dentil frieze below. Canted corners with applied carving and fluting. Channeled top drawer detail with a f...
Pine
Swedish Pair of Mid-19th Century Painted Chest of Drawers
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Swedish pair of mid-19th century painted chest of drawers. Fine quality pair of shaped oak and painted commodes circa 1860. Serpentine shaped top surface with moulded edge, bel...
Oak, Pine, Paint
Pair, Black Painted Pine Chest of 3 Drawers with Greek Key, Sweden circa 1840-60
Located in Round Top, TX
A pair of Gustavian pine chest of drawers with canted fluted side posts with upper carved diamond medallion, Greek key meander along top drawer, upper dentil molding and all raised o...
Brass
Sold|$10,000 / set
Pair of Gustavian Commodes
Located in Stamford, CT
Pair of white painted Gustavian style commodes with lozenge detail on the drawer front, circa 1860s.
Wood
Sold|$8,400
Pair of Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of commodes in the Gustavian style, Sweden circa 1840, in pale blue paint.
Brass
Sold|$8,400 / set
Pair of Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of two-drawer commodes in the Gustavian style, Sweden, circa 1870 with applied swags and tassels.
Wood
Sold|$9,400 / set
Pair of Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of two-drawer Swedish chests in the Gustavian style, circa 1870. Shaped tops with dentil molding on the front and sides, raised lozenges on each of the drawer fronts, and shaped...
Brass
Sold|$9,000 / set
Pair of 19th Century Gustavian Commodes
Located in Stamford, CT
Circa 19th century pair of Swedish Gustavian style commodes with three large horizonal drawers, round metal pulls, and Greek key trim on the top drawer front.
Wood
Sold|$19,000
Pair of Blue Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Stamford, CT
Pair of 19th century three-drawer Gustavian commodes with Grecian décor.
Wood
Sold|$6,907 / set
Pair of Blackpainted Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Aabenraa, DK
Pair of blackpainted Gustavian style commodes Each with three drawers Faux locks.
Pine
Sold|$11,500 / set
Pair of Gustavian Commodes, circa 1890
Located in Stamford, CT
Pair of Gustavian style commodes in a dark grey paint with a lighter grey painted tabletop, circa 1890.
Wood
Sold|$8,600 / set
Pair of Gustavian Gray Swedish Commodes
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of two-drawer commodes in the Gustavian style, with dentil molding at the top, canted corners with reeded detail, and shaped aprons.
Wood
Sold|$8,500
Pair of Charming Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of Swedish commodes in the Gustavian Style, circa 1860, in black paint with blue-painted laurel swags.
Brass
Sold|$7,600
Pair of Gustavian Style Swedish Commodes
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Black painted pair of small three drawer chests, Sweden circa 1880, in the Gustavian Style. Shaped tops, canted corners with reeded corner posts, and tapering square legs.
Wood
Sold|$14,200
Pair of 19th Century Black Gustavian Commodes
Located in Stamford, CT
A pair of mid-19th century black-painted Gustavian style commodes.
Pine
Sold|$14,500
Pair of Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of three-drawer breakfront commodes in the late Gustavian style, Sweden circa 1860.
Wood
Sold|$9,200
Pair of Late Gustavian Commodes
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of Swedish three-drawer chests from the late Gustavian period, circa 1830. Marbled tops, canted corners with reeded corner posts, and simple tapered feet.
Wood
Sold|$8,400
Pair of Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of very similar chests of drawers in the Gustavian style, Sweden circa 1880. Each has three drawers with incised lattice pattern and brass hardware, canted corners and dentil de...
Brass
Sold|$8,200 / set
Pair of Black Painted Gustavian Style Commodes
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of Swedish two-drawer chests, circa 1870, in the Gustavian style. A double row of dentil molding appears under the marbled top. Canted corners have reeded corner posts with appl...
Wood
Sold|$16,000 / set
Pair of 19th Century Blue Painted Gustavian Commodes
Located in Stamford, CT
Pair of 19th century blue painted Gustavian commodes featuring top drawer decorated with "à la grecque" or Greek Fretwork border.
Wood
Sold|$6,200
Pair of Gustavian-Style Commodes
Located in New Preston, CT
Petite pair of oyster painted Swedish chests with decorative fluted detail and brass hardware, raised on angled tapered legs.
Sold|$2,400
Pair of Gustavian Style Bedside Commodes
Located in Water Mill, NY
Pair of 4-drawer Gustavian style bedside commodes
Sold|$15,000
Pair of Gustavian 2-Drawer Commodes
Located in Water Mill, NY
Beautiful and rare pair of Swdish Gustavian Commodes with original hardware, circa 1860
Sold|$3,800
Pair of Gustavian Period Style Commodes
Located in New York, NY
Plain feet and top with striated sides
Brass
Sold|$2,500
Pair of Gustavian Style 3-Drawer Commodes
Located in Water Mill, NY
Nicely carved pair of Gustavian style 3-drawer commodes
Sold|$4,400
Pair of Gustavian Style 3-Drawer Commodes
Located in Water Mill, NY
Attractive and well made pair of Gustavian style 3-drawer commodes
Pair of Swedish Gustavian Style Painted Blue Chests/Commodes Late 19th Century
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Pair of antique Swedish Gustavian style pale blue distressed painted chests / commodes.
Wood
Pair of Gustavian Style Commodes in Fine Milk Paint Finish
Located in New York, NY
A finely crafted pair of Gustavian styled commodes in white milk paint finish, with fluted mitered side panels, rounded plateau top edges, and bronze medallion hardware with pull rings.
Sold|$12,470
Pair of Gustavian Chest of Drawers
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pair of four drawer Gustavian Chests.
Sold|$8,400 / set
Pair of Swedish Commodes
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of commodes, Sweden circa 1880, in the Gustavian Style.
Wood
Sold|$18,700
Pair of Gustavian Chest of Drawers
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pair of three drawer Chests in a worn pale yellow patina.
Wood
Sold|$15,000
Pair of Ebonized Swedish Commodes
Located in New York, NY
Pair of ebonized wood commodes, each with a rectangular molded top with chamfered corners, above three graduated drawers
Pine
Sold|$9,600
Pair of Gustavian Style Chests of Drawers
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of commodes, Sweden circa 1870, in the Gustavian style.
Brass
Sold|$4,800
Pair of Swedish Bedside Commodes
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of three-drawer commodes, Sweden circa 1900, with brass hardware and tapering legs. Worn black paint.
Brass
Sold|$9,800
Pair of Gustavian Style Chests of Drawers
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of chests of drawers, Sweden circa 1880, in the Gustavian style and having reeded, canted corners and a shaped top. Original brass hardware.
Brass
Sold|$7,800
Pair of Gustavian Style Chests of Drawers
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of chests of drawers in the Gustavian style, Sweden circa 1880. Dentil molding around the top, canted corners with fluting, and tapering square legs. Brass hardware and black pa...
Brass
Sold|$9,500 / set
Pair of Gustavian Style Chests of Drawers
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of Swedish chests of drawers in the Gustavian style, circa 1860. Shaped tops with dentil molding on the fronts and sides. Top drawers with vertical fluting over two locking lowe...
Wood
Sold|$9,200 / set
Pair of Swedish Two-Drawer Commodes
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of Swedish commodes, circa 1870, in the late Gustavian style.
Wood
Pair of 18th Century Gustavian Period Antique Chests
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
An outstanding pair of restored 18th century Gustavian period chests with neoclassical columns, decorative raised panelled drawer fronts, shaped aprons, and square tapered feet with ...
Wood
Pair of Antique Swedish Gustavian Painted Chests, 19th Century
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Pair of antique Swedish Gustavian painted chests in blue paint with a carved arched style border around the top . The top is painted light grey faux marble finish, cut arched carved ...
Sold|$5,200
Pair of Gustavian Style Nightstands
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of nightstands, Sweden circa 1910, in the Gustavian style with garlands of fruit at the corners and carved, bulbous legs. From a private collection.
Wood
Sold|$7,600
Pair of Black Two-Drawer Swedish Commodes
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of black Swedish commodes, circa 1880, in the Gustavian Style.
Brass
Pair of Antique Swedish Gustavian Painted Chests, 19th Century
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Pair of lovely Swedish antique chest painted Gustavian white 19th century, with carved crown moulding around top with cut corners with delicate line carving, end with Classic flut...
Pine
Pair of 19th Century Swedish Gustavian Style Bedside Chests
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
A decorative pair of late 19th century Gustavian Style bedside chests with canted and fluted corners, raised panel drawers and long elegantly tapered feet. Swedish, circa 1870.
Wood
Sold|$9,500
Pair of Swedish Gustavian Bureaus
Located in New York, NY
Swedish Gustavian Bureaus in Original Milk Paint with Original Hardware. Finely Articulated Dentals and Mitered Corners with Star Design.
Wood
Sold|$14,375
Pair of Painted Commodes
Located in New York, NY
Pair of painted Gustavian three-drawer commodes with chamfered corners, lion head rondels, top dentil molding and faux-marble tops on tapered, fluted legs
Brass
Pair of Antique Swedish Gustavian Painted Chests, Late 19th Century
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Pair of antique Swedish Gustavian painted chests, late 19th century. A carved crown moiling around top of chests with reeded drawer fronts, cut corners with arched carved detail end...
Pine
Rare Pair of Small Gustavian Chest of Drawers, Sweden, circa 1860
Located in Bavaria, Munich, DE
Rare pair of small Gustavian chest of drawers, Sweden, circa 1860. Ready to use. Seltenes Paar kleine, Schwedische Kommoden, um 1860. Restauriert.
Pair of Antique Swedish Gustavian Style Chests, Early 20th Century
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Pair of antique Swedish Gustavian style chests, early 20th century, each with a faux marble-top, above carved rounded borders, cut off fluted corners and three drawers and decorative...
Metal
Sold|$18,700
Pair of Gustavian Chests of Drawers
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pair of Gustavian chests of drawers in a worn pale grey patina.
Wood
Sold|$14,500
Pair of Gustavian Chests of Drawers
Located in Sheffield, MA
Pair of Swedish Gustavian chests of drawers, circa 1820. Front and sides feature heavily reeded panels within raised frames with shaped detail at the corners. Dentil molding below th...
Brass
Pair of 19th Century Swedish Gustavian Style Breakfront Bedside Chests
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
An exceptional pair of very rare breakfront Gustavian Style bedside chests with beautiful faux painted black marble tops with decorative dentil trim, canted and fluted corners, shape...
Wood
Pair of Swedish Commodes with Faux Marble Tops
Located in Great Barrington, MA
Pair of two-drawer chests in the Gustavian style, Sweden, circa 1840, with marbleized tops, dentil molding and canted corners.
Pine
With clean lines and muted colors, antique Gustavian furniture is understated and elegant. It represents a more restrained version of the transition from Rococo to neoclassicism that was happening in France under Louis XVI. The style developed under Swedish King Gustav III, who reigned from 1771 until his assassination in 1792, and his son Gustav IV, who ruled until 1809. Although Gustavian furniture is mostly used to refer to pale painted cabinets, commodes, armchairs and other items, it involved a range of influences.
Gustavian-style furniture was inspired by discoveries at Pompeii and Herculaneum as well as the grandeur of European palaces like Versailles, with local softwoods such as pine and birch. There was also an emphasis on natural light; crystal chandeliers and large mirrors played a role in radiating the fleeting daylight of winter, giving it a distinctive aesthetic.
Where earlier furniture was curvy and florid, this new era was more architectural, with tapered and fluted legs and rectangular and oval shapes. Luminous gilt contrasted with the palette of soft blues on upholstery and painted surfaces. Leading furniture builders included Gottlieb Iwersson, Louis Masreliez and Erik Öhrmark. The latter, a French-born Swedish decorator, designed the Sulla chair, a seat that was demonstrative of technical skill and precise craftsmanship and drew on Greek klismos chairs. Masreliez’s Sulla chair was made by Öhrmark and featured decorative ornamentation produced by Jean-Baptiste Masreliez, Louis’s younger brother.
While the wealthy had furniture carved with neoclassical details like scallops and rosettes, more affordable options were adorned with faux finishes that mimicked marble and stenciled patterns. The simple elegance of Gustavian furniture would have a long impact on Swedish design, informing the 20th-century appreciation for function and form. In the 1950s, IKEA mass-produced copies of a Gustavian commode designed by cabinetmaker Georg Haupt, who created pieces for the Royal Palace, making the furniture a fixture of everyday Swedish life.
Find a collection of antique Gustavian seating, tables, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
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.