Andirons
19th Century French Renaissance Antique Andirons
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Belle Époque Antique Andirons
Bronze
1970s French Art Deco Vintage Andirons
Bronze
1880s French Louis XV Antique Andirons
Bronze
Early 19th Century English Baroque Antique Andirons
Metal, Bronze, Wrought Iron
19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze
Late 18th Century Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze
20th Century French Art Deco Andirons
Bronze, Wrought Iron
Early 1900s French Japonisme Antique Andirons
Marble, Bronze, Ormolu
18th Century French Louis XV Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron, Wrought Iron
19th Century Antique Andirons
Bronze
17th Century French Louis XIV Antique Andirons
Bronze, Wrought Iron
Early 1800s French Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
17th Century American Renaissance Antique Andirons
Bronze
19th Century Antique Andirons
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Louis XV Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
19th Century French Neoclassical Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
20th Century Italian Minimalist Andirons
Iron, Brass, Bronze, Copper
1920s French Art Deco Vintage Andirons
Bronze, Wrought Iron
21st Century and Contemporary American Andirons
Bronze, Steel
Early 1900s French Renaissance Revival Antique Andirons
Bronze
17th Century European Renaissance Revival Antique Andirons
Bronze, Wrought Iron
19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze
Late 18th Century American Antique Andirons
Bronze, Wrought Iron
Late 19th Century French High Victorian Antique Andirons
Bronze
Late 19th Century European Napoleon III Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
Mid-19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze
1810s French Louis Philippe Antique Andirons
Brass, Bronze, Iron
1860s French Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze
19th Century Neoclassical Antique Andirons
Bronze
19th Century French Louis XV Antique Andirons
Bronze
Early 20th Century Italian Andirons
Bronze
19th Century Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
Early 20th Century American Late Victorian Andirons
Bronze, Iron
Mid-19th Century French Louis XIV Antique Andirons
Bronze
19th Century French Empire Antique Andirons
Bronze
Early 20th Century American Georgian Andirons
Bronze, Wrought Iron
Early 1900s French Belle Époque Antique Andirons
Brass, Bronze, Steel
19th Century French Charles X Antique Andirons
Bronze, Ormolu
1880s French Antique Andirons
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze, Ormolu
1880s French Rococo Antique Andirons
Bronze
20th Century European Andirons
Brass, Bronze, Iron
17th Century Dutch Baroque Antique Andirons
Bronze, Wrought Iron
19th Century French Gothic Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
Late 18th Century European Other Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
19th Century French Louis XV Antique Andirons
Wrought Iron, Bronze, Ormolu
19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Andirons
Bronze, Ormolu
Late 19th Century French Baroque Antique Andirons
Bronze
20th Century Regency Andirons
Bronze
19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Andirons
Bronze
Late 19th Century Renaissance Revival Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
19th Century English Egyptian Revival Antique Andirons
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Andirons
Bronze
19th Century French Georgian Antique Andirons
Bronze
Early 19th Century English George III Antique Andirons
Bronze, Iron
19th Century Louis XV Antique Andirons
Iron, Brass, Bronze
1920s French Louis XV Vintage Andirons
Bronze, Iron
Antique and Vintage Andirons
A set of antique or vintage andirons is a staple accessory, part of the fireplace tools you’ll want to collect for keeping a neat and elegant fireplace in your home.
Using andirons in a fireplace elevates the fire, ensuring more air can get to the logs thus keeping a fire burning longer. Andirons also encourage ventilation and may also prevent smoke from working its way into your living room or bedroom.
Think of these accessories as part of an upright metal support system to optimize your fire. Antique andirons are basically u-shaped brackets with a curved end that come in pairs and are largely quite simple in structure, but the design of this household necessity has improved over time. Outwardly decorative andirons have become available since their debut because one should never underestimate the style quotient of an attractive hearth.
Andirons, which earned the nickname “firedogs” given their similarity in form to a pair of upright canines, are believed to be the oldest fireplace furnishings. They have been used broadly since at least the late Iron Age. Before iron became the material of choice, stone andirons did a suitable job of balancing the logs in a fire and adding a sense of symmetry to the hearth. Fire baskets, like the combination of andirons and a grate, afforded an opportunity to layer logs in a fire rather than delicately stacking them on andirons.
Today, andirons can be found in bronze and brass, too, which contrast wonderfully with a mantel carved from dark marble, for example, and add dimension to what might otherwise be a subdued space. And while people aren’t cooking in the fireplace anymore, andirons’ spit hooks offered an opportunity to roast meat or rest the pokers that you typically would’ve kept fireside.
During the Renaissance, andirons became especially ornate and even figurative, taking on human forms as well as marine life such as dolphins. Art Deco–era andirons are particularly exquisite. While the accessories are frequently characterized by rich geometric angles and sculptural curves, attributes that we know of most Art Deco furniture, artisans of the period also looked to what was by then a long tradition of designing andirons in the shape of animals and reptiles.
Adding fashionable antique or vintage andirons will not only improve the quality of a fire but can also elevate your space as well as the fireside experience. Find modern andirons, Art Nouveau andirons and other varieties today on 1stDibs.