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Desk Accessories

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Desk Accessories For Sale
Period: 18th Century and Earlier
Period: 1930s
"Conquest of Spain, " Extraordinary, Monumental Bronze Inkwell, Art Deco
Located in Philadelphia, PA
More of an indictment of the Spanish conquest of North America than a celebration, this quite extraordinary, large bronze inkwell depicts a Conquistador, holding sword and whip, seat...
Category

1930s American Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Bronze

Four Bronzes: a Piggy Bank, Calendar, Matchbox Holder and a Place Card Holder
Located in Copenhagen, DK
Danish design. Four bronzes consisting of a piggy bank, calendar, matchbox holder and a place card holder. Art Deco - In style of Just Andersen. Approximate 1930s. In good conditi...
Category

1930s Danish Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Bronze

Modernist Paperweight Style of Edgar Brandt
Located in London, GB
Modernist French paperweight with a pivoting dice in the manner of Edgar Brandt.
Category

1930s French Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Iron

Inkwell, Glazed Ceramic, Talavera de la Reina, Spain, 17th Century
Located in Madrid, ES
Inkwell. Glazed ceramic. Talavera de la Reina, Spain, 17th century. Inkwell or spice rack with a square shaped hole that is made of glazed ceram...
Category

17th Century Spanish Baroque Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Ceramic

Georgian Captains Military Writing Box by Hewlins, St Martins Lane
Located in Northampton, GB
Antique military captain's writing box with brass strapping, secret compartment and special large steel key to secure the box for stability on the shores or military manoeuvres! T...
Category

Late 18th Century British Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Brass

Restored Typewriter/ Consul, Model 2226, Czechoslovakia, 1965s
Located in Praha, CZ
The entire machine is expertly disassembled, cleaned, lubricated, all repaired and fully functional The packaging of the machine has surface defects that are associated with the age...
Category

1660s Czech Mid-Century Modern Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Metal

Large Late 17th Century Baroque Iron Door Lock
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
Large French baroque wrought iron door lock on acrylic stand.
Category

Late 17th Century French Baroque Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Wrought Iron

Decorative Blue Marianne Brandt Avantgarde Bauhaus Letter Scale, 1930s, Germany
Located in Vienna, AT
An iconic light-blue sheet metal postal letter scale from the1930s in blue, designed by Marianne Brandt, executed by Ruppel Werke, Ruppelwerk in Gotha, G...
Category

1930s German Bauhaus Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Sheet Metal, Metal, Iron

Portable Typewriter Continental 340, Germany 1937
Located in Praha, CZ
Made in Germany. Production in the years 1931-1940 Made of metal, steel, chrome, Polished Good original condition, functional.
Category

1930s German Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Metal

Ducks Murano, 1930, Italian, Sing Salviati & C
Located in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, C
Murano We have specialized in the sale of Art Deco and Art Nouveau and Vintage styles since 1982. If you have any questions we are at your disposal. Pushing the button that reads 'View All From Seller'. And you can see more objects to the style for sale. Salviati & C Measures: Violet : 33 long x 10 high x 5.5 depth Green: 30 long x 9 high x 5.5 depth The lawyer Antonio Salviati and his dream In 1859 in his premises at Number 731 of Dorsoduro, Venice the “Salviati Dott. Antonio fu Bartolomeo” company was established. This is when, Vicenza-born lawyer Antonio Salviati started the entrepreneurial career, moved by a passion for the precious mosaics of the Basilica of San Marco and fascinated by Murano glass art, he decided to start-up his own production of mosaics and objects in Murano glass. An ambitious and far-sighted goal pushed him along this path: to revive the fate of Murano glass production that has been fallen for decades. A challenge which finds the maximum support from two fundamental figures in the history of Murano glass: the mayor of the island, Antonio Colleoni, and the Abbot Vincenzo Zanetti, founder of the glass museum and of the first art school for glass masters. The first successes and international investments The launchpad was the “First Glassmakers’ Exhibition” in 1864 in which Salviati participated with a monumental mosaic that earns him a prize superior to the Gold Medal. The success achieved affirmed the credibility of the Company which thus started its glass production in Palazzo da Mula. The new corporate and productive reality needed investors and the lawyer started to internationalise the company by addressing the economic and financial market across the Channel. The UK immediately showed huge interest in Salviati’s mosaics – as testified by the mosaic that can be seen on the façade of the current Apple Store in Regent Street, London. It was also in London, on 21st December 1866, that the “Società Anonima per Azioni Salviati & C.” was established with the support of diplomat Sir Austen Henry Layard and historian William Drake. The new corporate set-up was further established with the purchase of a new headquarter, this time on the Riva dei Vetrai in Murano. The universal show of Paris in 1867 celebrated the relaunch project of Antonio Salviati “Venice owes a debt of gratitude to the knight Salviati in the resurgence for one of the most legitimately famous of its industries”. From Esposizione Illustrata di Parigi, 1867 pg. 275. “Venice and Italy have gain huge success in the Universal Exhibition. The resurgence of one of the city’s most famous industries is consecrated in this very occasion by the gold medal awarded by the jury to Mr Salviati […] the crowd […] is gathering around the display cases that hold those pieces of glass that are so transparent and so light as to appear like woven air, impregnated, when in their elegant forms that become rainbows of those iridescent reflections that cover them at the artist’s whim – the author of a real ray of sunshine from the beautiful and splendid Venice”. From Esposizione Illustrata di Parigi, 1867 pg. 311 The fundamental role of training in murano glass Training plays a fundamental role for the Company; attendance at the Art School was made compulsory for “[…] all the young workers of the Factory who don’t only tire themselves in manual work. This was established with the idea not only to lift their dignity and their initially limited aspirations, […] but also to improve their artistic education and thereby facilitate an improvement also in their economic situation”. Together with the art school, a free school was also set up to teach all employees to read and write. Diversification in production and made-to-measure projects In a short time, Salviati & C. diversified its production to include glasses, cups, amphoras, and vials which guaranteed the first prize in the universal exhibition for three consecutive years. Its mosaic production also flourished, being used in world-class projects: from the Houses of Parliament in London, to the Viceroy’s palace in Alessandria in Egypt, to the Opera House of Paris, including the private homes of wealthy New York personality. The entire 19th century for Salviati & C. was represented by development, success and fame in the national and international markets, and the Company became a symbol and reference point of Murano glass art throughout the world. The Salviati legacy at the turn of the century On the death of Antonio Salviati in 1890, first his three children followed one another at the helm of the company and then Maurizio Camerino, previously general manager. It was thanks to him that the decorative mosaic project of the Stanford Memorial Church in Palo Alto (California, USA) took place after 12 years of work. As well as the opening of a sales point in Via Montenapoleone in Milan and the institution of a museum collection of Murano glass from the 19th and 20th centuries. The post-war years, biennials and lighting After Maurizio Camerino’s death in 1931, his three children took over the helm of the company: its solid foundations allowed them to strive for new important goals in the art world, participating in the Biennials of 1932 and 1934. Not even the Second World War could tarnish the strength of the Salviati brand: in the post-war years Renzo Camerino renewed the ruined production headquarter and enthusiastically restored all his commercial contacts. Thanks to his grandson Renzo Tedeschi (newly graduated in Engineering at the Polytechnic of Turin and upon his return from an apprenticeship in the United States), Salviati launched its production in lighting appliances. The following years saw intense growth in the number of collaborations with renowned artists and designers. In 1959, the production site was moved to Fondamenta Radi 16, where it still stands today. The great lighting projects The larger production area allowed the company to further expand the international market in the field of architectural lighting. A number of projects were undertaken, such as the 9-tonne, 22-metres high chandelier in the Chamber of Commerce in Parma, the ceiling illumination in the premises of the World Intellectual Property Organisation in Geneva and the Kowloon Hotel in Hong Kong; not to mention the sound-absorbing windows of the Aula Nervi in the Vatican and the lighting system of the great honour hall of the Philippine Plaza Hotel in Manila in collaboration with architect John Marsteller. The reputation of Salviati & C. was further affirmed by the commission – after an international call for bids – for twelve 11-metre high chandeliers for the Tonhalle concert hall in Dusseldorf, made using an innovative system of modular glass elements – “LS- System” – one of the today company’s cornerstones. Salviati from the modern age to the present The story of Salviati continues in the modern era, keeping the focus on creating an innovative style that had distinguished it since its inception. Participation in international exhibitions increased, such as the Venice Biennials from 1958 to 1972 (the final year in which Murano glass was allowed) thanks to projects by designers of the calibre of Betha and Teff Sarasin, Claire Falkestein, and Luciano Gaspari. In 1962 Salviati was awarded with the highest recognition in the Design world, the “Compasso d’Oro” prize assigned by A.D.I. for the Marco vase designed by architect Sergio Asti. In 1965 the company changed its name to Salviati & C. s.p.a.; then it was purchased by the Gruppo Ferruzzi in 1987 which later on it was transferred to a French company. Since 2015 the company returned to be Venetian with the acquisition by the Umana group. Salviati and its designers Salviati’s designers: Luciano Gaspari, Sergio Asti (Compasso d’Oro 1962), Claire Falkenstein, Ward Bennet, Teff and Betha Sarasin, Ingo Maurer, Ross Lovegrove, Amanda Levete, Tom Dixon, Nigel Coates, Thomas Heatherwick, Luca Nichetto, Ben Gorham...
Category

1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Murano Glass

GAB Sweden, a writing set in bronze. Art Deco, approx. 1930
Located in Copenhagen, DK
GAB Sweden, a writing set in bronze consisting of an inkwell, letter knife, letter holder, seal and inkwell. Art Deco approx. 1930. In excellent condition with good patina. Seal w...
Category

1930s Swedish Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Bronze

Vintage Chewing Gum Dispenser, Italy 1930s
Located in Roma, IT
Vintage Chewing Gum Dispenser, Italy 1930s. Excellent condition, working.
Category

1930s American Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Plastic

German Designer, Complete Writing Set, 1930s/40s
Located in Copenhagen, DK
German designer, complete writing set with inkwell, letter holder, wax seal and a letter knife. Approx. 1930/40s. In excellent condition. Letter knife with small chip. A glass in...
Category

1930s German Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Marble

18th C. Venetian Italian Wood Box w/its Original Finish, 26.5" Wide
Located in Atlanta, GA
A Venetian Italian box with its original finish, from the 18th century. This antique wood box from Italy is rectangular in shape with a raised foliate...
Category

Early 18th Century Italian Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Wood

Piscine Stoneware Vase Applied Silver, Wilhelm Kage, Argenta, Gustavsberg #1029
Located in Rothley, Leicestershire
Superb bijou vase by Wilhelm Kage for Gustavsberg, Sweden from the Argenta collection. Decorated with a stylised fish of applied silver on mottled green stoneware. Circa 1930's Ba...
Category

1930s Swedish Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Silver

Addison Model 5D Red Butterscotch Marbled Catalin 'Courthouse' Tube Radio
Located in Van Nuys, CA
This Art Deco-styled vintage tube radio was made by the Addison Industries Ltd. of Canada in circa 1939. This is Addison's Model 5D, otherwise known as th...
Category

1930s North American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Bakelite

Art Deco Desk Set with Ink Wells & Calendar
Located in Oakland, CA
Art Deco desk set with ink wells & calendar. Modernist design with glass base and streamlined metal with black vitrolite glass tops for the ink wells...
Category

1930s French Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Metal

18th Century Italian Bronze Pestle for a Mortar, 9 Inches Long
Located in Stamford, CT
If you've got the mortar, I have the pestle! There are so many mortars out there, and so few pestles. It's nice to have both. Here is your opportunity to marry this large scale pestl...
Category

18th Century Italian Baroque Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Bronze

Just Andersen Denmark, Art Deco Ribbed Pewter Fluted Cache Pot #2352
Located in Rothley, Leicestershire
A petite Just Andersen pewter cache pot with fluted rim Perfect as a desk accessory or purely ornamental Stamped and numbered 2352 on base Height 2.5 inch, Diameter 2.75 inch In ver...
Category

1930s Danish Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Pewter

Art Deco chrome inkwell
Located in Barnstaple, GB
Circa 1930s a charming chrome on marble depiction of a little girl seated reading a book next to an inkwell. She sits upon a variegated black marble plinth with chased recess for a f...
Category

1930s British Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Chrome

Purple Amethyst Decorative Object or Paperweight
Located in New York, NY
A beautiful purple amethyst cluster decorative object, paperweight, or luxury display piece. A great piece for a bookshelf, cocktail table, on a desk as paperweight, etc. Dimensions:...
Category

15th Century and Earlier Organic Modern Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Amethyst, Quartz

Italian 18th Century Balance, Scale
Located in Atlanta, GA
A very stunning 18th century balance - Scale from Rome, Italy. Beautifully crafted from polychromed and gilt wood. A wonderful accent piece for a library or office.
Category

Mid-18th Century Italian Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Wood

Desk Set in Elegant Art Deco from 1930s
Located in Knivsta, SE
A very elegant desk set in art deco probably from 1930s or earlier. The desk set is made of patinated brass and consists of two parts. An ink stand with pen stand and a rocker blotter...
Category

1930s European Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Brass

Blue and White Dutch Delft Tile with Bird, Mid 17th Century
Located in AMSTERDAM, NH
The Netherlands Circa 1630 - 1660 A fine painted blue and white tile with a decoration of a bird on a piece of fruit. With so-called oxheads as corner decoration. A genuine c...
Category

Mid-17th Century Dutch Baroque Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Ceramic, Majolica, Faience

Bird Murano, 1930, Italian
Located in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, C
Murano We have specialized in the sale of Art Deco and Art Nouveau and Vintage styles since 1982. If you have any questions we are at your disposal. Pushing the button that reads 'Vi...
Category

1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Murano Glass

Seal Initialled WJ Wivern IS Lion Profile George III Silver
Located in BUNGAY, SUFFOLK
Chased with a wivern rampant above the initials ‘WJ’. Stamped 'IS' makers mark, the duty mark of 1795 with the King's profile and a lion passant (guardant) mark of London and other E...
Category

18th Century British George III Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Silver

Austrian Set of Six Vellum Bound Books, Circa 1699
Located in Atlanta, GA
A handsome collection of 6 Austrian vellum bound books from the late 17th century. This antique set of six books from Austria, which retain their original vellum bindings, have Latin...
Category

Late 17th Century Austrian Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Paper

Giraffe Murano, 1930, Italian
Located in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, C
Murano We have specialized in the sale of Art Deco and Art Nouveau and Vintage styles since 1982. If you have any questions we are at your disposal. Pushing the button that reads 'Vi...
Category

1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Murano Glass

Portable Typewriter Corona Junior, U.S.A. circa 1395
Located in Praha, CZ
Made in Syracuse, N.Y., U.S.A. Made of metal, steel, chrome, Polished. Good original condition, functional. producer LC Smith & Bros. Typewriter Company.
Category

1930s American Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Metal

16th Century, Spanish Wrought Iron Handle
Located in Marbella, ES
16th Century Spanish wrought iron handle.
Category

16th Century Spanish Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Wrought Iron

Dancing Couple in Murano, 1930, Italian
Located in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, C
Murano We have specialized in the sale of Art Deco and Art Nouveau and Vintage styles since 1982. If you have any questions we are at your disposal. Pushing the button that reads 'Vi...
Category

1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Murano Glass

Horse Murano, 1930, Italian
Located in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, C
Murano We have specialized in the sale of Art Deco and Art Nouveau and Vintage styles since 1982. If you have any questions we are at your disposal. Pushing the button that reads 'V...
Category

1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Murano Glass

Couple of Murano, 1930, Italian
Located in Ciudad Autónoma Buenos Aires, C
Murano We have specialized in the sale of Art Deco and Art Nouveau and Vintage styles since 1982. If you have any questions we are at your disposal. Pushing the button that reads 'Vi...
Category

1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Murano Glass

Delightful Pair Just Andersen Disko Metal Flared with Leaf Decoration Vases #D55
Located in Rothley, Leicestershire
Pair of diminutive Just Andersen Disko metal flared flower vases with rich patina Delicate in design and particularly decorated at base with stylised leaves Stamped and numbered D5...
Category

1930s Danish Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Pewter

Cartier Paris, Sterling Silver ‘Street Lamp’ Table Lighter, 1930s
Located in London, GB
Cartier, Paris A remarkable and most likely unique Sterling silver table lighter in the form of a 1930s gas street lamp. The tapering lantern reflector with blue and frosted glass panes, holds the wick which is revealed by removing the chained silver finial...
Category

1930s French Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Sterling Silver

Sterling Silver Letter Organizer
Located in Brooklyn, NY
This sterling silver letter holder may have been used as a toast rack in its former life but we thought this time around we would use it ...
Category

1930s American Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Sterling Silver

Art Deco Desk Set in Portoro Marble, 1930's
Located in PRAHA 5, CZ
An inkwell, a mail buffer and a pad with ink blotting paper. Manufactured in France during 1930's. Made of Italian Portoro marble and chrome plated steel. In ...
Category

1930s French Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Marble, Steel

Rare Mannequin Head
Located in Greenwich, CT
A wooden mannequin head, probably a toupe stand, with good color and a well-carved idiosyncratic and compelling face, having laconic eyes and with what ...
Category

1930s German Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Beech

Large 18th Century French Lock and Key
Located in Houston, TX
Large 18th century French iron lock and key. This handsome french iron lock comes with the original key and makes an interesting coffee table accessory or...
Category

18th Century French Louis XVI Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Iron

Typewriter, Manufacturer Remington: Zbrojovka Brno, circa 1935
Located in Praha, CZ
Oznaceni: Remington Z16 Vyrobeno v Ceskoslovensku. Výroba zacala v roce 1934 Vyrobeno z kovu, oceli, chromu Leštené Dobrý puvodní stav, funkcní Mezerník se nevrací.
Category

1930s Czech Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Metal, Chrome

Writing Set by Ernst Svedbom for Svenskt Tenn, 1934
Located in Long Island City, NY
Writing, seven parts set in pewter by Ernst Svedbom (1913-2004), Goldsmith AB for Swedish Tenn, circa 1934-1936. Marked: SG A-B Svenskt Tenn K8. A pair...
Category

1930s Swedish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Desk Accessories

18th Century Spanish Decorative Finial Carved in Wood in the Shape of a Plant
Located in Marbella, ES
18th Century Spanish Decorative Finial Carved in Wood in the Shape of a Plant
Category

18th Century Spanish Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Wood

1930s E. Gubelin Art Deco Desk Clock in the Asian Chinese Style
Located in Long Beach, CA
FACTORY / HOUSE: E. Gubelin, Lucerne Switzerland STYLE / REFERENCE: Art Deco, Desk Clock MOVEMENT / CALIBER: 8 Day, Lever Escapement DIAL / HANDS: Original, Fired Enamel, Polished St...
Category

1930s Swiss Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Precious Stone

18th/19th Century English Georgian III Period Matthew Boulton Inkstand
Located in Forney, TX
A fine quality Georgian III period silver plated inkstand by celebrated English silversmith Matthew Boulton, displaying all of the timeless eleganc...
Category

Late 18th Century English Georgian Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Silver Plate

Vintage Petrified Wood Paperweight
Located in San Diego, CA
A very nice vintage petrified wood paper weight, circa 1960s. The piece is in very good condition with wonderful brown and tan colors and measur...
Category

15th Century and Earlier Congolese Mid-Century Modern Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Petrified Wood

Bronze Mortar with Pestle, Spain, 17th Century
Located in Madrid, ES
Mortar with hand. Bronze. XVII century. Mortar with a circular base, cylindrical body and slightly outwardly flared mouth, decorated with a series of smooth horizontal moldings arranged both in the lower and upper areas and with simple vertical elements (which still maintain slight balustraded shapes) derived from of the ribs that these specimens used to have in the medieval Spanish...
Category

17th Century Spanish Baroque Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Bronze, Other

Art Deco Bronze Letter Holder Modelled as a Stork English, circa 1930
Located in Forest Row, East Sussex
An Art Deco letter holder with a bronze stork head over a marble base. The beak opening to act as a letter holder. Dimensions: H 5.5cm W 14c...
Category

1930s English Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Marble, Bronze

Hagenauer Bookends Pair Leaping Gazelles Wien Made in Austria
Located in Oakland, CA
Hagenauer bookends pair leaping gazelles. Original had rubbed brass patina finish—stylized Haenauer animals, four of them intertwined and perfectly proportioned. The size is just enough to support books and still look sculptural and elegant. Both items are stamped on the flat side where you rest the books. “WHW” Made in Austria...
Category

1930s Austrian Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Metal, Brass

Pocket Watch, Deroches Brothers, Gilded Metal, Enamels, Etc. P Late 18th Century
Located in Madrid, ES
Pocket watch, Deroches Brothers. Gilded metal, enamels, etc. Possibly towards the end of the 18th century. Pocket watch with a case with a transparent glass part and a composition ...
Category

Late 18th Century European Neoclassical Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Metal, Enamel, Other

Blue and White Dutch Delft Tile with the Good Shepherd, Early 18th Century
Located in AMSTERDAM, NH
The Netherlands Rotterdam Circa 1720 - 1740 An unusually fine painted religious 'open air' tile with deep shades of blue and a shining glaze, decorated with the story of the lost sheep...
Category

Mid-18th Century Dutch Baroque Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Ceramic, Majolica, Faience

Pocket Watch, Jaqs Blanc, Gold, Enamel, Etc. Possibly ca Late 18th C
Located in Madrid, ES
Pocket watch, Jaqs Blanc. gold, enamel, etc. Possibly towards the end of the 18th century. Pocket watch with a white dial and Arabic numerals for the hours and lines and Arabic num...
Category

Late 18th Century Neoclassical Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Metal, Gold, Enamel, Other

17th / 18th Century Italian Wooden Foot of a Santos
Located in Buisson, FR
Wonderful decorative item. Italy circa 1650-1750 Weathered.
Category

17th Century Italian Baroque Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Oak

Amazing, Art Deco Desk Set with Perpetual Calendar, Brass, Glass and Leather
Located in Catania, IT
Art Deco desk set in black leather, brass and glass. The leather with contrast saddle stitching is handcrafted and exquisitely done using brass elements that give the set a luxuriou...
Category

1930s Italian Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Brass

Art Deco Streamlined Skyscraper Style Burled Carpathian Elm Letter Holder, 1930
Located in Auribeau sur Siagne, FR
This elegant Art Deco Skyscraper style letter holder was realized in the United States, circa 1930. It features four concentric demilune streamlined forms that diminish in size from ...
Category

1930s American Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Wood, Burl

Vintage Cut Geode Paperweight
Located in San Diego, CA
A very nice vintage cut geode paper weight, circa 1960s. The piece is in very good condition with wonderful brown, tan, grey and blue colors and measures 4...
Category

15th Century and Earlier American Mid-Century Modern Antique Desk Accessories

Materials

Petrified Wood

French Art Deco Malachite Pen Holder
Located in Clearwater, FL
A real statement piece! An Art Deco malachite with brass three pen holder. France, circa 1930s.
Category

1930s French Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Malachite

English Art Deco Sterling Silver Toast Rack by Hukin & Heath
Located in Bath, GB
A wonderful little toast rack which would look equally impressive on a smart desk-top to organise small papers, business cards etc. Made from solid Engli...
Category

1930s British Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Sterling Silver

Antique French Cosmetic Face Powder Compact Box
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
Art Deco woman's cosmetic face powder box. This petite wooden box has it's original label on top reading Blue De Dorin; a well known French toiletry company. The vanity box is sweet and simply elegant sitting on display in a boudoir or bathroom. Add this little treasure...
Category

1930s French Art Deco Vintage Desk Accessories

Materials

Wood

Antique, New and Vintage Desk Accessories

Whether you’ve carved out a space for a nifty home office or you prefer the morning commute, why not dress up your desk with antique and vintage desk accessories? To best tiptoe the line between desk efficiency and desk enjoyment, we suggest adding a touch of the past to your modern-day space.

Desks are a funny thing. Their basic premise has remained the same for quite literally centuries: a flat surface, oftentimes a drawer, and potentially a shelf or two. However, the contents that lay upon the desk? Well, the evolution has been drastic to say the least.

Thank the Victorians for the initial popularity of the paperweight. The Industrial Revolution offered the novel concept of leisure-time to Europeans, giving them more time to take part in the then crucial activity of letter writing. Decorative glass paperweight designs were all the rage, and during the mid-19th-century some of the most popular makers included the French companies of Baccarat, St. Louis and Clichy.

As paper was exceedingly expensive in the early to mid-19th-century, every effort was made to utilize a full sheet of it. Paper knives, which gave way to the modern letter opener, were helpful for cutting paper down to an appropriate size.

Books — those bound volumes of paper, you may recall — used to be common occurrences on desks of yore and where there were books there needed to be bookends. As a luxury item, bookend designs have run the gamut from incorporating ultra-luxurious materials (think marble and Murano glass) to being whimsical desk accompaniments (animal figurines were highly popular choices).

Though the inkwell’s extinction was ushered in by the advent of the ballpoint pen (itself quasi-obsolete at this point), there is still significant charm to be had from placing one of these bauble-like objets in a central spot on one’s desk. You may be surprised to discover the mood-boosting powers an antique — and purposefully empty — inkwell can provide.

The clamor for desk clocks arose as the Industrial Revolution transitioned labor from outdoors to indoors, and allowed for the mass-production of clock parts in factories. Naturally, elaborate designs soon followed and clocks could be found made by artisans and luxury houses like Cartier.

Find antique and vintage desk accessories today on 1stDibs.

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