Ptolomeo Bookshelf

The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw sweeping social change and major scientific advances — both of which contributed to a new aesthetic: modernism. Rejecting the rigidity of Victorian artistic conventions, modernists sought a new means of expression. References to the natural world and ornate classical embellishments gave way to the sleek simplicity of the Machine Age. Architect Philip Johnson characterized the hallmarks of modernism as “machine-like simplicity, smoothness or surface [and] avoidance of ornament.”

Early practitioners of modernist design include the De Stijl (“The Style”) group, founded in the Netherlands in 1917, and the Bauhaus School, founded two years later in Germany.

Followers of both groups produced sleek, spare designs — many of which became icons of daily life in the 20th century. The modernists rejected both natural and historical references and relied primarily on industrial materials such as metal, glass, plywood, and, later, plastics. While Bauhaus principals Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe created furniture from mass-produced, chrome-plated steel, American visionaries like Charles and Ray Eames worked in materials as novel as molded plywood and fiberglass. Today, Breuer’s Wassily chair, Mies van der Rohe’s Barcelona chair — crafted with his romantic partner, designer Lilly Reich — and the Eames lounge chair are emblems of progressive design and vintage originals are prized cornerstones of collections.

It’s difficult to overstate the influence that modernism continues to wield over designers and architects — and equally difficult to overstate how revolutionary it was when it first appeared a century ago. But because modernist furniture designs are so simple, they can blend in seamlessly with just about any type of décor. Don’t overlook them.

Antique and vintage wine coolers can be integral to keeping your drinks refreshing. They’re also a fun finishing touch for any cocktail party. Alongside your luxury barware, crystal tumblers and eye-catching decanters, don’t you want to show off an Art Deco wine cooler at your holiday get-together?

The desire to chill wine and other alcoholic beverages dates back to the ancient Greeks and Romans. With no refrigeration, these civilizations relied on snow and ice to keep their drinks cold. The original wine cooler was the psykter, a mushroom-shaped Greek vase that could sit in a krater of ice water or snow. The popularity of cold drinks has persisted across centuries to the medieval era and the present day. The wine cooler has evolved through time to meet these tastes.

Vintage wine coolers come in a range of forms and materials. These wine coolers echo the aesthetics of their eras beautifully, whether they’re fashioned from silver, glass, crystal or ceramic.

On 1stDibs, find a wide variety of wine coolers to browse, with hundreds of vintage and antique designs in a range of styles that includes Art Deco, Regency, mid-century modern and more.