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The style of 18th-century French furniture was guided by the court. When Louis XV, who reigned from 1715–74, focused royal life on the smaller salons of Versailles rather than its grand chambers, it transformed the aesthetics away from the imposing and angular furniture that characterized the style of Louis XIV. A broader focus on comfort and more delicate forms define antique Louis XV furniture, with nature-inspired carvings, wood inlays, curved cabriole legs, asymmetrical shapes and rounded oval seat backs. The furnishings changed throughout the king’s life, as he ascended to the throne as a child and then grew to establish his own tastes.

Pieces like the bergère, an upholstered armchair with a wide cushion that fit the flowing dresses in fashion at the time, reflected this more informal court. Introduced at the start of Louis XV’s reign, bergère chairs in this style were deeper and broader than other chairs of the period.

Louis XV tapestries and carpets tended to be floral and colorful, and design elements were borrowed from Asia. Dutch-born cabinetmaker Bernard van Risenburgh brought lacquer techniques influenced by Japan and China into his luxuriously made furniture. Along with its fine details, the furniture of the era also featured new innovations including mechanical devices. Jean François Oeben, a royal cabinetmaker, created such intricate pieces as a mechanical table for Madame de Pompadour, Louis XV’s mistress. It involved a sliding top and a writing surface that extended from its marquetry panels.

During the later years of Louis XV’s reign, there was a shift from the ostentatious rocaille style, part of the exuberantly decorative Rococo movement in Europe for which designers such as Nicolas Pineau and Juste-Aurèle Meissonier are known. The style under Louis XVI would return to boxier forms, but with a neoclassical touch inspired by the ancient world.

Find antique Louis XV bedroom furniture, seating, tables and decorative objects on 1stDibs.

A wide range of antique and vintage lighting can be found on 1stDibs — shop Tiffany Studios table lamps, modern chandeliers, understated wall pendants and other decorative lighting and fixtures now.

While we’re indebted to thinkers like Thomas Edison for critically important advancements in lighting and electricity, we’re still finding new ways to customize illumination to fit our personal spaces all these years later. 

Today, lighting designers like the self-taught Bec Brittain have used the flexible structure of LEDs to craft glamorous solutions by working with what is typically considered a harsh lighting source. By integrating glass and mirrors, reflection can be used to soften the glow from LEDs and warmly welcome light into any space.

Although contemporary innovators continue to impress, some of the classics can’t be beat. 

Just as gazing at the stars allows you to glimpse the universe’s past, vintage chandeliers like those designed by Gino Sarfatti and J. & L. Lobmeyr, for example, put on a similarly stunning show, each with a rich story to tell.

As dazzling as it is, the Arco lamp, on the other hand, prioritizes functionality — it’s wholly mobile, no drilling required. Designed in 1962 by architect-product designers Achille & Pier Giacomo Castiglioni, the piece takes the traditional form of a streetlamp and creates an elegant, arching floor fixture for at-home use.

There is no shortage of modernist lighting similarly prized by collectors and casual enthusiasts alike — there are Art Deco table lamps created in a universally appreciated style, the Tripod floor lamp by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings, Greta Magnusson Grossman's sleek and minimalist Grasshopper lamps and, of course, the wealth of mid-century experimental lighting that emerged from Italian artisans at Arredoluce, FLOS and many more are hallmarks in illumination innovation. 

With decades of design evolution behind it, home lighting is no longer just practical. Crystalline shaping by designers like Gabriel Scott turns every lighting apparatus into a luxury accessory. A new installation doesn’t merely showcase a space; carefully chosen ceiling lights, table lamps and floor lamps can create a mood, spotlight a favorite piece or highlight your unique personality.

The sparkle that your space has been missing is waiting for you amid the growing collection of antique, vintage and contemporary lighting for sale on 1stDibs.