The eclectic furnishings of Maitland-Smith celebrate artisan skills in an age of machines. Hand-carved woodwork, inlaid marquetry, painted detailing, gilding and lost wax casting lend the company’s decorative accents an artistic flair. Focused on pieces that add a dynamic flourish to an interior by incorporating tactile materials like leather, seashell inlays and crushed eggshell, the manufacturer draws inspiration across centuries, from the curvy forms of the Louis XV period to the geometric angles of mid-century modernism.
Paul Maitland-Smith established the company in Hong Kong in 1979, after getting his start in London in the 1950s as an antique dealer who also sold reproduction furniture, something that would become a Maitland-Smith specialty. The manufacturer’s early reproductions of 17th- and 18th-century furniture included Chippendale dining chairs, and soon afterward, Maitland-Smith expanded into a range of decorative designs that often exuded a whimsical spirit, whether a coffee table shaped like a stack of books or a pair of decorative obelisks. Maitland-Smith’s signature sculptural table lamps in particular show off this playful sensibility, with one balancing a pen-shell shade on a monkey’s tail and another taking on the form of a miniature hot-air balloon.
Since its founding, Maitland-Smith’s sourcing has been based in Asia, and although Paul Maitland-Smith later sold the company that still bears his name and is now headquartered in North Carolina, the brand’s furnishings are still largely made in Cebu, Philippines.
Today, Maitland-Smith continues to innovate on its finely crafted offerings by collaborating with contemporary designers and studios such as Tony Duquette Studios (founded by set and costume designer Tony Duquette in 1941), Celerie Kemble and painter and textile designer Susan Hable Smith.
Find a wide range of Maitland-Smith furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
$252Sale Price|20% Off
Vintage Maitland Smith Chinoiserie Porcelain Celadon Lidded Whatnot Trinket Dish
By Maitland Smith
Located in Dayton, OH
Maitland Smith round lidded trinket dish / box with a factory distressed pale celadon green glaze, topped with a bronze pineapple shaped finial. Dimensions: 10.25" x 9" (Diameter x...
Bronze
$1,200Sale Price / set|20% Off
Pair of Hand Painted Ceramic & Iron Temple Jars with Foo Dogs by Maitland Smith
By Maitland Smith
Located in San Diego, CA
Spectacular pair of hand painted ceramic temple jars with iron foo dog finials and bases by Maitland Smith, circa 1980s. The pair are in very good condit...
Iron
$13,519Sale Price / set|35% Off
H 36.23 in Dm 22.05 in
Giant Blue and White Porcelain Jars with Pho Dogs, Japanese, 1960
Located in Brescia, IT
This pair of elegant and fine giant jars in porcelain, has its origin in the extremely East part of the Chinese continent, probably from Japan. The entire surface is decorated with the relief of white flowers, the peonia flowers, symbol of authority, power and wealth. On the surface, are present many drawings in blue of the Pho dogs...
Porcelain
Pair of Chinese Porcelain Foo Dogs
Located in Essex, MA
Each seated on pedestals one stepping on a ball the other clutching a reptilian creature. Painted in the spinach and egg color.
Other
Antique Meiji Period Kutani Japanese Porcelain Temple Jar
Located in Lambertville, NJ
Antique Meiji period Japanese porcelain temple jar with intricate hand painted decoration and gilt. The jar in Classic Kutani colors with floral and phoenix birds all over the top an...
Porcelain
$1,200
H 12.5 in W 24 in D 11 in
Large Vintage Maitland-Smith Hand-Painted Mallard Duck Lidded Decorative Box
By Maitland Smith
Located in San Diego, CA
A striking and whimsical large-scale decorative mallard duck container designed by Maitland-Smith. Expertly hand-painted with richly detailed feather patterns, the sculpture captures...
Wood
$2,480 / set
H 10 in Dm 6 in
Pair of Petite Chinese Persimmon Jars with Famille Rose Peonies, c. 1920s
Located in Chicago, IL
Dated to the 1920s during China's brief Republic Period (1912-1949), these petite oval ginger jars is a colorful example of Chinese famille rose porcelain. Contrasted by a persimmon-...
Porcelain
$2,880 / set
H 10.25 in Dm 5.5 in
Pair of Petite Shanghai Deco Persimmon Jars with Pine & Crane, c. 1920s
Located in Chicago, IL
Dated to the 1920s during China's brief Republic Period (1912-1949), these petite oval ginger jars impart a blessing of longevity. An allover glaze of persimmon-orange color cloaks t...
Porcelain
$3,600
H 8.25 in W 5.25 in D 2.75 in
Japanese Ceramic Jar with Inlay Design Tatsuzo Shimaoka with Tomobako
By Tatsuzo Shimaoka 2
Located in Atlanta, GA
A handsome Japanese ceramic stoneware vase in rectangular form by Tatsuzo Shimaoka (1919-2007), an important member in Japanese Mingei folk art movement. Made in the unique Jomon-Zog...
Ceramic
Vintage Maitland-Smith Hand Painted Chinese Porcelain Vase
By Maitland Smith
Located in Forney, TX
A fabulous vintage Maitland Smith Chinese porcelain vase. Very nice quality, exquisitely hand painted polychrome decoration in Asian floral and fa...
Porcelain, Paint
Pair of Chinese Shizi Hong Ginger Jars
Located in Chicago, IL
A rich, monochrome red glaze coats this ginger jar shaped contemporary vase, drawing attention to its updated profile and its sculptural Fu dog top. Referred to as shizi, these mythi...
Porcelain
$980Sale Price|30% Off
H 15 in W 8 in D 13 in
Hand-Made Greco Roman Figural Bronze Cornucopia Form Vase by Maitland Smith
By Maitland Smith
Located in Fort Washington, MD
An excellent handmade vase in the form of a ram with a generously scaled cornucopia - top fit for florals. Beautiful detailed and heavy that would be a statement piece in any locatio...
Bronze
Famille Rose Celadon Chinoiserie POrcelain Covered Urns / Jars
Located in Tarry Town, NY
These exquisite late 19th century Chinese porcelain covered urns, crafted in the Famille Rose and Celadon Chinoiserie style, are a stunning testame...
Porcelain
Pair of Chinese Blue and White Jars with Lids
Located in Bradenton, FL
Pair of Chinese blue and white vases with lids.
Porcelain
Sold
H 18.5 in W 12 in D 20 in
2 Maitland Smith Blue & White Chinoiserie Porcelain Bronze Ginger Jars Urns Pair
By Maitland Smith
Located in Dayton, OH
Pair of late 20th century Maitland Smith handled Ginger Jars or Urns. Made from porcelain with hand painted blue over white chinoiserie design featuring a phoenix amongst flowers wit...
Porcelain