Early 20th Century Colonial Sri Lankan Satinwood Garden Chair
Located in Southampton, NY
Hand-turned garden chair made of solid satinwood, Colonial, Sri Lanka, circa 1900.
Cane, Satinwood
Pair of Anglo Indian Style Embossed Leather Sling Chairs
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Unusual pair of Anglo Indian style sling chairs featuring lush brown leather seats hand stitched and embossed with elephants and palm trees from Sri Lanka and stretched over Classic ...
Leather
Antique Ebony Carved Grandfather Chair, Ceylon, 1820, Colonial Style
Located in New York, NY
The Grandfather shell mark chair, shown here, is from Ceylon, circa 1820. Featuring an exquisite carved ebony frame—distinguished with a shell mark detail on the top rail—and hand-c...
Cane, Ebony
$2,866Sale Price|20% Off
Antique Carved Veranda Chair, Ceylonese, Teak, Ornate Seat, Victorian, C.1880
Located in Hele, Devon, GB
This is an antique carved veranda chair. A Ceylonese, solid teak ornate seat, dating to the Victorian period, circa 1880. Exceptional craftsmanship to this superb showpiece chair Di...
Teak
Ebony Grandfather Chair from Sri Lanka
Located in Culver City, CA
Grandfather chair from Sri Lanka made from ebony wood and sugar cane.
Cane, Ebony
Anglo-Indian Carved Ebony Side Chair, Sri Lanka Galle District
Located in New York, NY
An Anglo-Indian elaborately carved ebony side chair Sri Lanka, probably Galle District, circa 1830-1850.
Ebony
Unavailable
H 40 in W 24 in D 31 in
Set of Two Teak Wood and Cane Lounge Chairs from Colombo Area of Sri Lanka
Located in Houston, TX
Set of two midcentury elegant lounge chairs from the Colombo area in Sri Lanka. These are superbly crafted in old world carpentry.
Teak
Unavailable
H 40 in W 24 in D 31 in
Set of Four Teak Wood and Cane Lounge Chairs from Colombo Area of Sri Lanka
Located in Houston, TX
Set of four mid-century elegant lounge chairs from the Colombo area in Sri Lanka. These are superbly crafted in old world carpentry.
Teak
Four 1850s Solid Ebony Side Chairs from Sri Lanka
By Affiliated Craftsmen
Located in Houston, TX
These four solid ebony side chairs were made on commission in the Gallee district of Sri Lanka for Dutch coffee plantation owners.
Ebony
Set of Four Stylish Caned Chairs in Rare Nadun Wood
Located in Richmond, CA
Simple and elegant caned chairs made from rare nadun wood.
Cane
Set of Six 19th Century British Colonial Satinwood Armchairs
Located in East Hampton, NY
Set of six Ceylonese dining chairs, peg construction, hand carved and hand caned. Solid and very comfortable.
Satinwood
Early 20th Century Nadun Wood Armchair from Ceylon
Located in Richmond, CA
A beautiful nadun wood armchair with a newly caned seat from Ceylon. We have a total of five available.
Cane
Unavailable
H 42 in W 26 in D 39 in
Pair of 19th Century Solid Satinwood Intricately Carved Plantation Chairs
Located in Houston, TX
These satin wood plantation chairs were made on commission for Dutch settlers in Gallee district of Sri Lanka Only very wealthy people could afford items made of satinwood.
Victorian Teak and Rattan Plantation Steamer Chair
Located in Stratford upon Avon, GB
This teak and rattan plantation chair came from the family home of Hercules Linton, one of the nautical architects who designed the Cutty Sark. The chair was made in Columbo, Ceylon ...
Teak
19th Century British Colonial/Regency Ebony Chair
Located in San Marino, CA
A 19th century British Colonial Ebony chair with carved back and feet. Caned seat with scrolled arms.
Rattan, Ebony
Unavailable
H 38.5 in W 19.5 in D 14 in
Four Mid-19th Century Exquisitely Carved Solid Ebony and Cane Side Chairs
Located in Houston, TX
It is the ebony and the magnificent craftsmanship make these chairs museum pieces. These were made on commission for the European settlers who owned coffee plantations in Gallee dist...
Ebony
Pair of Sri Lankan Easy Armchairs, Sri Lanka, Late 20th Century
Located in Utrecht, NL
These rare Sri Lankan wood and cane chairs recall the midcentury style of Pierre Jeanneret, while being beautiful pieces on their own merit as well.
Cane, Wood
A Pair of Sri Lankan Teak and Cane Planters Chairs
Located in London, GB
Sri Lanka, circa 1920 A pair of 20th century Sri Lankan sling back planters chairs in the British colonial style, the frames in solid teakwood with a shell motives carved to the bac...
Cane, Teak
A Pair Of Bergermeister Chairs
Located in Lincolnshire, GB
A good pair of hardwood Dutch colonial bergermeister armchairs of great colour , with carved decoration to the backs and cabriole legs.
Sold
H 36 in W 24 in L 36 in
Pair of Dutch Colonial Solid Satinwood Caned Sling Back Planters Chairs, 1850
Located in Southampton, NY
Provenance: Harrington Estate, Importers of Colonial Raj Furniture from Sri Lanka
Cane, Satinwood
Pair of 19th Century Ceylonese Satinwood & Caned Lounge Chairs
Located in Southampton, NY
Made in the Late 19th in Ceylon (now Sri Lanka), these chairs represent the fusion of British design influences with local craftsmanship.
Cane, Satinwood
Pair of Ceylonese Solid Ebony Hall Chairs
Located in Lymington, Hampshire
A pair of Ceylonese solid ebony hall chairs each with a baluster splat, upholstered seat and scrolling cabriole front legs, boldly carved with floral arabesques, fleshy acanthus leav...
Ebony
Sold
H 36.62 in W 20.08 in D 16.93 in
Pair of Ceylonese 19th Century Carved Ebony Side Chairs with Specimen Inlay Gall
Located in Benington, Herts
Pair of Ceylonese 19th Century Carved Ebony Side Chairs with Specimen Inlay Galle District Ceylonese circa1840 These outstanding chairs were conceived in the early rococo revival ...
Ebony
Sold
H 34.13 in W 19.25 in D 16 in
Anglo-Indian Carved Solid Ebony Klismos Chairs, Set of Six, Ceylon, circa 1830
Located in Kinderhook, NY
A rare and exquisite set of circa 1830 Anglo-Indian, Anglo-Ceylonese, or Sri Lankan Galle District manufactured carved solid ebony dining chairs of neoclassical English regency klism...
Brass
An Early 19th Century Anglo Sinhalese Planters Chair
Located in London, GB
Sri-Lanka, circa 1820 An exceptional mid nineteenth century Anglo Sinhalese planters chair, of solid ebony construction, with scoop caned seat and scrolling arms, the seat rail and ...
Cane, Wood
An Anglo Indian Desk Chair With Fish Scale Needlework Seat
Located in London, GB
A mid nineteenth century Anglo Indian desk chair, with out swept open arms terminating in scrolls, the front legs with gadrooned carving throughout. The seat upholstered with fish sc...
Hardwood
British Colonial, Ceylonese, Mahogany Rolled Arm Caned Steamers Chair
Located in Southampton, NY
British Colonial, Ceylonese, mahogany rolled arm caned steamers chair. Handwoven caning in good condition. Restoration to left arm shown in photo. Arm is intact and stabile. Voyag...
Mahogany, Cane
Set of Four George III Style Giltwood Armchairs
Located in Essex, MA
Known for; Father of the apparel industry in Sri Lanka. These chairs are from a set of six sold by Christies in London 18th of November 1982, the property of Mrs.I.D Darnton.
Giltwood
Sold
H 39 in W 24 in D 33 in
British Colonial, Ceylonese, Nadoun Wood and Caned Nursery Chair, circa 1900
Located in Southampton, NY
This is a smaller scale nursery chair which would have been used by the families of British officers stationed in Sri Lanka, around the turn of the century.
Cane, Wood
19th Century Ceylonese Solid Satinwood Caned Reading Chair
Located in Southampton, NY
This chair came out of a Portuguese House in Sri Lanka.
Cane, Satinwood
Sold
H 24 in W 20 in D 30 in
British Colonial Ceylonese Child's Planters Chair in Satinwood & Caning, c. 1900
Located in Southampton, NY
A rare British Colonial, Ceylonese, child's plantation or planters chair in solid satinwood, handmade pegged construction, hand canning and footrest extensions (40 inches when extend...
Satinwood, Cane
Sold
H 36.62 in W 20.08 in D 16.93 in
Ceylonese 19th Century Carved Ebony Side Chair with Specimen Inlay Galle Distric
Located in Benington, Herts
Ceylonese 19th Century Carved Ebony Side Chair with Specimen Inlay Galle District Ceylon circa1840 This outstanding chair was conceived in the early rococo revival style and e...
Ebony
With entire areas of our homes reserved for “sitting rooms,” the value of quality antique and vintage seating cannot be overstated.
Fortunately, the design of side chairs, armchairs and other lounge furniture — since what were, quite literally, the early perches of our ancestors — has evolved considerably.
Among the earliest standard seating furniture were stools. Egyptian stools, for example, designed for one person with no seat back, were x-shaped and typically folded to be tucked away. These rudimentary chairs informed the design of Greek and Roman stools, all of which were a long way from Sori Yanagi's Butterfly stool or Alvar Aalto's Stool 60. In the 18th century and earlier, seats with backs and armrests were largely reserved for high nobility.
The seating of today is more inclusive but the style and placement of chairs can still make a statement. Antique desk chairs and armchairs designed in the style of Louis XV, which eventually included painted furniture and were often made of rare woods, feature prominently curved legs as well as Chinese themes and varied ornaments. Much like the thrones of fairy tales and the regency, elegant lounges crafted in the Louis XV style convey wealth and prestige. In the kitchen, the dining chair placed at the head of the table is typically reserved for the head of the household or a revered guest.
Of course, with luxurious vintage or antique furnishings, every chair can seem like the best seat in the house. Whether your preference is stretching out on a plush sofa, such as the Serpentine, designed by Vladimir Kagan, or cozying up in a vintage wingback chair, there is likely to be a comfy classic or contemporary gem for you on 1stDibs.
With respect to the latest obsessions in design, cane seating has been cropping up everywhere, from sleek armchairs to lounge chairs, while bouclé fabric, a staple of modern furniture design, can be seen in mid-century modern, Scandinavian modern and Hollywood Regency furniture styles.
Admirers of the sophisticated craftsmanship and dark woods frequently associated with mid-century modern seating can find timeless furnishings in our expansive collection of lounge chairs, dining chairs and other items — whether they’re vintage editions or alluring official reproductions of iconic designs from the likes of Hans Wegner or from Charles and Ray Eames. Shop our inventory of Egg chairs, designed in 1958 by Arne Jacobsen, the Florence Knoll lounge chair and more.
No matter your style, the collection of unique chairs, sofas and other seating on 1stDibs is surely worthy of a standing ovation.
Modern icons are showing up in gracefully layered dining nooks, living rooms and lounges — proof that great design only gets better with context.
Andrianna Shamaris has filled her epic new home with pieces of her own design.
Top interior designers show — and tell — us how to create delectable spaces for hosting dinner parties.
With its plush cushions, cane details and dazzlingly colorful back, it’s inviting from every angle.
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
The plush Cove Slipper 2.5 Seater sofa is just one of many convenient combinations from the London-based maker.
Sam Klemick's cool stool is edgy, cozy and environmentally sustainable all at once.
From his massive collaborative workshop in a former paper factory, the designer concocts funky furniture from disused materials, as well as luxe hotel interiors like the new Mix Brussels.