Empire Desks
EMPIRE STYLE
From 1804–15, Napoléon I reigned as the emperor of France, bringing the country into a new era of opulence after the fall of the monarchy and the tumultuous years of the French Revolution. He declared, “We must have very solid things, made to last 100 years.” Empire-style furniture followed suit, with imposing pieces constructed from mahogany and adorned with gilded ornaments. Expanding on the neoclassicism popularized in the previous century — such as in Louis XVI style — Empire style borrowed from the great civilizations of antiquity, from Egypt to Greece and Rome, to connect this nascent empire to the power of the past.
Napoléon I believed the production of fine furniture would reflect the stature of the republic, with his official architects Charles Percier and Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine leading the way with their work on his residences.
Luxurious materials, symmetrical shapes and bold colors characterize antique Empire-style bedroom furniture, armchairs, cabinets and other structures, with frequent motifs including mythological creatures, geometric designs, acanthus leaves, eagles, bees (the imperial emblem) and swans, a favorite of Empress Joséphine.
Flat surfaces, like marble tabletops, were accented with decadent details, such as the bronze furniture mounts made by sculptor Pierre-Philippe Thomire for the French palaces. Martin-Guillaume Biennais, who worked as the imperial goldsmith, crafted intricate luxury objects that mixed wood, fine metal, mother-of-pearl and ivory. Ormolu — or elaborate bronze gilding — was essential to French design in the 18th and 19th centuries as a cornerstone of the neoclassical and Empire styles.
The style became popular abroad, influencing the American Empire style. Stately pieces carved with sprigs of olives by cabinetmaker Pierre-Antoine Bellange were acquired by American President James Monroe for the White House in 1817.
Find a collection of antique Empire tables, lighting, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.
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Style: Empire
Mahogany Architects Table by Jean-Joseph Chapuis, 1810
Located in Hellouw, NL
Beautiful Empire mahogany architects table by Jean-Joseph Chapuis (1765-1864).
Jean-Joseph Chapuis (born in Brussels) was a famous furniture maker. He obtained a master craftsman ti...
Category
Early 1800s Belgian Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Brass
French Restauration Antique Mahogany Cylinder Roll-Top Desk circa 1830
Located in Shippensburg, PA
FINE RESTAURATION PERIOD ORMOLU-MOUNTED FLAMED MAHOGANY BUREAU À CYLINDER
France, circa 1830
Item # 403ZGP18C
An exceedingly fine bureau à cylinder from the Restauration period in F...
Category
19th Century English Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Marble, Brass, Ormolu
Antique Empire Style Partners Desk with Leather Top
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Original Vintage Condition
Materials: Patinated Leather Top, Mahogany
Category
1930s American Vintage Empire Desks
Materials
Leather, Mahogany
1st Empire Mahogany desk, ca 1810
Located in Santa Barbara, CA
Unusual 1st Empire desk, circa 1810, in mahogany, Burl, with Brass inlay and blackened columns ending on 2 blackened lion's feet above gilded leaves .
Center drawer pulls out to re...
Category
1810s French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany, Giltwood, Lacquer
Antique French Empire Flame Mahogany Abattant with Figural Ormolu 19thC
Located in Big Flats, NY
An antique French Empire abattant secretary offers flame mahogany construction with upper drawer over drop front desk opening to interior with p...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Ormolu
American Mahogany Partner's Desk
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Beautiful Mahogany Partner's Desk with glass knobs. Top refinished and everything else cleaned and ready to go! Two wide drawers per each side with smaller drawers below. Beautiful c...
Category
1880s American Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
Large French Neoclassical Mahogany Roll-Top Desk
Located in Troy, NY
French mahogany Empire desk of stately proportions, with a roll top, revealing a double row of total six drawers under an open shelf, as well as a sliding writing surface with inset ...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
Late 19th Century Empire Desk
Located in Stahnsdorf, DE
Empire desk with mahogany veneer, decorated with numerous brass applications. The surface of the furniture is finished with polish, giving a subtle gloss. The table top is covered wi...
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Wood
French Empire Mahogany Bonheur du Jour Desk
Located in Brooklyn, NY
19th century French Empire mahogany Bonheur du Jour desk. The upper section is decorated with classical motifs of pharaoh masks and wreaths around...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Wood, Mahogany
French Escritoire Desk Mahogany Antique Chest
Located in Potters Bar, GB
This rather imposing escritoire stands upon turned feet.
The bottom panelled doors open to reveal an inner oak lined drawer.
The writing section having a drop down fall with a leat...
Category
1860s Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
French Bureau Plat or Desk with Gilt Griffin Legs
Located in Atlanta, GA
French Empire Style Bureau Plat or Desk, France, circa 1950s. Elegant design in black lacquered wood with brass hardware and an inset black leather...
Category
1950s French Vintage Empire Desks
Materials
Brass, Metal
Empire Style Mahogany Middle Desk with Egyptian Décor, France 19th Century
Located in VERSAILLES, FR
It is composed of two boxes and a central tray opening with nine drawers in total. The desk is in mahogany veneer of very fine grain quality, the color of the mahogany is not dark but rather soft, in harmony with the slightly darker soft veining that embellishes this mahogany veneer. This desk is adorned with gilded bronzes depicting busts of Egyptian women, leafy motifs such as palmettes and laurel wreaths, diamonds. All the bronzes are original, none of them are added.
The top of the desk is embellished with empire green leathers gilded with iron. This "Return from Egypt" style desk is a fine example of the Empire style.
It can also be combined with our empire green leather office chair...
Category
1890s French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Bronze
French Empire Mahogany Drop Front Secretary "Secrétaire à Abattant"
Located in Tarry Town, NY
Early 19th century French mahogany wood Empire style drop front secretary with a removable black marble top. The secretary features two front side columns with bronze mounts detail w...
Category
1810s French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Brass
Russian Empire Commode Secretary
Located in Newport Beach, CA
An exceptional Russian Empire fruitwood and ebonized 4 drawer chest/secretary. The top drawer conceals the drop-down desk featuring 6 drawers and a lapis...
Category
1850s European Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Lapis Lazuli, Marble, Carrara Marble, Brass
French, Mid-19th Century Empire-Style Desk
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Mid-19th century
The petite mahogany knee-hole desk with a central drawer and two slender drawers on each side,
with gilt-bronze mounts and inset tooled green leather writing su...
Category
Mid-19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Bronze
Fornasetti Decorated Antique Italian Writing Desk
By Fornasetti
Located in Hudson, NY
The exquisite antique table desk, shown here, represents the first collaboration between foley&cox HOME and Fornasetti. The desk was purchased in Italy and hand-decorated by Fornasetti using...
Category
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
19th Century Scandinavian Birch Empire Bureau Secretary with Bookcase, c. 1820
Located in Miami, FL
A very fine Scandinavian Empire/Biedermeier secretary in beautiful birch wood with mahogany interior, Denmark, circa 1820. The highly sculptural form makes this piece an outstanding ...
Category
Early 19th Century Swedish Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Birch
French Bureau Plat Desk, Empire Dummy Partners Desks
Located in Potters Bar, GB
Gorgeous French Empire bureau plat
Classic French antique desk in kingwood with ormolu fixtures
We date this desk to circa 1930
Has drawers on both sides although one side they are decorative so this is a dummy partners desk
Great for a home office set...
Category
1930s French Vintage Empire Desks
Materials
Kingwood
Large French Empire Napoleon III Bureau Plat Desk
Located in Miami, FL
A fine large sized flat desk otherwise referred to as a "bureau de ministre" or ministers flat desk.
In mahogany and mahogany veneer flamed on all sides, beautiful ornamentation of...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Bronze
French Secretaire à Abattant, First Empire Period
Located in Montreal, Quebec
French first Empire period Secretaire à Abattant, also known as a drop-front secretary, fall front or cantilevered desk. Under the dark grey marble top is a secret, entablature drawe...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Marble, Bronze
Empire Drop Front Desk, Kopenhagen, 1820
Located in Belmont, MA
Empire drop front desk, Copenhagen 1810-20.
This unique Danish secretary desk is embellished with mahogany veneer. The lower part has three cur...
Category
1810s Danish Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
Empire Style Pedestal Desk in Mahogany with Gilt Bronze Mounts, France ca. 1830
Located in Atlanta, GA
19th century French Empire mahogany pedestal desk with gilt bronze mounts, black leather top, two (2) slides, and eight (8) drawers.
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Leather, Mahogany
French 19th Century Empire Style Mahogany and Ormolu Bureau Plat
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A very handsome French 19th century Empire st. mahogany and ormolu Bureau Plat. The desk is raised on straight tapered legs with ormolu sabots and pierce...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Ormolu
Russian Early 19th Century Empire Style Mahogany 'Bureau a Cylindre'
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A very high quality and spectacular Russian early 19th century Empire style mahogany ' Bureau a Cylindre' with all original gilt and hardware...
Category
19th Century Russian Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Brass, Ormolu
19th Century Empire Style English Roll Top Desk with Bronze Mounts
Located in New York, NY
19th century Empire style English dark-brown wooden desk with roll top that opens to reveal drawers and letter holders and a gold embossed leather desk surface, topped with a bronze-filigree framed tray, and supported by two columns of drawers, each with a gold drawer pull...
Category
19th Century Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
Early 19th Century French Empire Desk
Located in Nashville, TN
Mahogany veneered French Empire desk. Leather insert top. Brass hardware on column legs and bun feet. Very unique and good quality period French des...
Category
1810s French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
Empire Style Desk Rich Register of Gilded Bronze
Located in Marseille, FR
Lady's desk with Empire style mahogany, base decorated with griffins, very beautiful register of gilded bronzes oak drawer bottoms, top and zippers trimmed with brown and green Moroc...
Category
Early 20th Century French Empire Desks
Materials
Bronze
Antique Empire Style Gilt Bronze Mounted Desk
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
Antique Empire style mahogany desk with gilt bronze mounts, circa 1890-1910. This desk has very fine quality gilt bronze mounts.
Category
Early 1900s European Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Ormolu
Early 19th Century French Empire "Bureau a Gradin" Desk
Located in Vancouver, British Columbia
The rectangular superstructure centred by two drawers above two shelves, flanked by an pair of cupboard doors flanked and separated by patinated and gilt bronze caryatids, the lower part with a leather lined writing slide above three drawers around a slight kneehole each side fitted with a writing slide raised on square supports joined by stretchers and fitted at the front with painted and parcel gilt wood female torsos...
Category
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
19th Century Italian Empire Writing Table in Mahogany with Marquetry
Located in Miami, FL
A handsome Italian Empire desk or sofa table in mahogany with fold-down leaves, and resting over trestle base with splayed legs ending in carved li...
Category
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany, Satinwood
19th Century French Empire Escritoire
Located in Chelmsford, Essex
For sale is a fine quality, 18th century Louis XV Escritoire. The Escritoire has a drawer at the top with ornate mounts, above a fall front opening to reveal a fitted interior compri...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
Ormolu-Mounted Mahogany Pedestal Desk in the Empire Style
Located in London, GB
A fine French late 19th century mahogany and ormolu pedestal desk with tooled leather top in the Empire style, having nine drawers, one containing a locking secret compartment, with ...
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Ormolu
Early 19th Century French Empire Flame Mahogany Drop Front Secretary Desk
Located in Miami, FL
Classic antique French Empire drop front "abattant" secretary desk made with magnificent high quality flame mahogany adorned with bronze doré mounts and its original gray marble top....
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Bronze
19th Century Desk, Antique Bonheur du Jour, Gamichon a Paris
By Jean-Baptiste Gamichon
Located in Hele, Devon, GB
This is a French antique bonheur du jour by Jean-Baptiste Gamichon dating to circa 1810.
A piece for the connoisseur, rare and sought after,...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mirror, Mahogany
French Empire Period Mahogany, Marble and Gilt Bronze Cabinet
Located in London, GB
This beautiful mahogany cabinet was crafted in France in the early 19th century, when Napoleon Bonaparte was Emperor (1804-1814,15). The cabinet features a wide rectangular body, top...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
19th C. Royal Antique Burl Wood Secretary Desk & Black Leather Drop Leaf Top Hrh
Located in West Hollywood, CA
19th C. royal antique burl wood secretary desk & black leather drop leaf top HRH . Very rare early 19th century secretary " Secrétaire a' Aba...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Bronze
A Russian Neoclassical Roll Top Writing Desk
Located in New Haven, CT
A most elegant Russian Plumpudding mahogany cylinder desk, circa 1810. Raised on four tapered legs the lower case holds seven drawers and two sliding shelves with leather tops that e...
Category
1810s Russian Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
Superb 19th Century French Empire Escritoire
Located in Dallas, TX
Marvelous 19th century French Empire three-drawer escritoire with lovely Breche africaine marble top. Having detailed bronze mounts in urn and floral motifs, columnar supports with p...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Wood
19th Century Birch and Morocco Leather Pedestal Desk in the French Empire Manner
Located in London, GB
A pedestal desk in the French Empire manner
of freestanding breakfront form with everted angles, constructed in birchwood, and burr birchwood, having bronze accents drawn from the...
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Ormolu, Bronze
French 19th Century Empire Mahogany Partners Desk
Located in Troy, NY
Elegant French Empire bureau-plat or partners desk, The top, inlaid with a center-star-motive and small decorations on each corner, above five drawers, the middle one opening from th...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Mahogany
Swiss Early 19th Century Empire Bureau Cabinet, Signed Hirschgartner
Located in Worpswede / Bremen, DE
This fine Empire drop-front secretary (secrétaire a'abattant or secrétaire en armoire) with a writing and standing desk is signed M. Hirschgartner. Hans Martin Hirschgartner (1766-18...
Category
19th Century Swiss Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Marble
French Empire Dressing Table
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
This stylish and chic French Empire piece dates from the napoleioic period of the early 19th century and is fabricated in mahogany with inset leather top, elongated, hand-carved swan...
Category
Mid-19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Leather, Mahogany, Giltwood
French Empire Architect's Desk
Located in Dallas, TX
French Empire architect's desk.
Flame grain mahogany veneers, leather covered drawers.
Category
1810s Unknown Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Leather, Wood
Antique North German/Danish Empire Cylinder-Top Secretary with Bookcase, c. 1815
Located in Miami, FL
From the Hamburg/Schleswig-Holstein region of Germany, once part of Denmark, a very handsome Empire secretary with bookcase in ash with inlays and marquetry silhouettes of neoclassical Roman images. Cylinder top opens to a pull-out desk which offers a felt-lined lectern or writing surface flanked by sliding storage compartments, as well as a series of small drawers and a central cabinet. Above desk, are three cupboards and below, there are three long drawers. Northern Germany or from the Danish Jutland region, circa 1815.
Note: Green baize on writing surface can be replaced with leather.
Measures: 46" wide x 21" deep x 83" high (With desk top open...
Category
Early 19th Century German Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Ash
Large Empire French Writing Desk with Embossed Brown Leather Top & Column Legs
Located in Atlanta, GA
Large Empire French writing desk or bureau plat with embossed brown leather top, bronze dore mounts, column legs, and three drawers.
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
19th Century French Empire Style Mahogany Roll-Top Desk with Gilt Bronze-Mounted
Located in Cypress, CA
This impressive 19th century, French Empire style gilt bronze-mounted Fine mahogany roll-top desk,
The blackstone top over three short gilt-bronze mounted drawers, issuing a barrel top desk...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Ormolu
Antique Neo-Egyptian French Empire Style Desk
Located in New York, NY
This mahogany desk in the French Empire style features extensive gilt bronze mounts on every face. Its craftsmanship is very high, comparable to works by Maison Krieger. The drawers ...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Bronze
Superb Quality 19th Century French Kingwood and Ormolu Mounted Bureau-Plat Des
Located in Martlesham, GB
A superb quality 19th century French Kingwood and ormolu mounted bureau-plat desk, having a shaped top with an ormolu moulded edge, decorative shell engraved corner mounts, kingwood ...
Category
1880s French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Kingwood
French Empire Mahogany and Ormolu-Mounted Escritoire or Secretaire
Located in Berlin, DE
A French Empire mahogany and ormolu mounted writing cabinet surmounted by a Belgian marble-top, fitted with a frieze drawer, the fall inclosing a fitted interior with tooled original leather lined...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Desks
Materials
Bronze
Empire desks for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a broad range of unique Empire desks for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the Mid-20th Century, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage desks created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include case pieces and storage cabinets, tables, asian art and furniture and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with wood, mahogany and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Empire desks made in a specific country, there are Europe, France, and Italy pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original desks, popular names associated with this style include and Jean Joseph Chapuis. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for desks differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $2,360 and tops out at $100,000 while the average work can sell for $9,500.
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