After the Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula in the eighth century, Islamic Spain became a cultural mix of influences that shaped both private homes and religious spaces. Moorish design was the name given to this style, which evolved through the 15th century with vibrant tile work, horseshoe arches and lavish ornamentation, most visible at sites such as Granada’s Alhambra and the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba. Moorish furniture was often similarly ornate, and featured pieces inlaid with wood, ivory and bone.
When European designers began studying Moorish art and architecture in the early 19th century, it led to a Moorish Revival. Appropriating the style’s decorative flourishes and architectural elements, it promoted a romantic view of Islamic design. Travelers could bring home a memento of what they witnessed in the Middle East, a trend that aligned with a fad for themed interiors. Men’s smoking rooms arranged with ottomans, divans and settees and inlaid tables were especially popular, as were cafés where coffee was served amid bead curtains and colorful floor mats. (Handwoven rugs are a centerpiece of Moorish interiors.) Octagonal rooms with domed ceilings were created for wealthy homes, frequently with furnishings like pipe stands, filigree plasterwork and arched doorways. The horseshoe arch is an iconic attribute of Moorish architecture that, in addition to Spain, can be found in Sicily, Morocco and elsewhere.
Several late 19th to early 20th-century movements featured Moorish touches. The American and English Aesthetic Movement, for example, borrowed liberally from global decorating styles, as seen in furniture designed by Lockwood de Forest, a New York-born artist who mixed Eastern and Western forms. The visual vocabulary of Art Nouveau also references the elegant use of geometry in Moorish design, with Milanese Art Nouveau furniture designer Carlo Bugatti drawing inspiration from the style. The Arts and Crafts movement, which prized expressive yet simple design, incorporated Moorish influences; hand-painted furniture and tile work created by William De Morgan, a British designer and potter who made furnishings for the likes of Morris & Co., were informed by techniques from Moorish Spain.
Find a collection of Moorish lighting, decorative objects, folk art and more furniture on 1stDibs.
Orientalist Patinated Bronze Figure of a Turkish Young Man
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Moorish Turkish man dressed in Ottoman Empire-style costume and turban. An orientalist Moorish patinated cast bronze figure of a standing guard on stand. (Missing something in his ha...
Bronze
Polished Brass Islamic Moorish Style Desk Inkwells Set
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Early 20th century desk set, rare and great quality Mamluk Cairoware style, silver and copper inlaid brush and inkwell holder and ink blotter rocker, features a wood base with ornate...
Brass
Cold Painted Orientalist Vienna Bronze, Young Boy w/Large Urn, Bergmann Foundry
Located in Petaluma, CA
This highly detailed cold painted bronze was meticulously executed by the premier maker of Vienna bronzes, Franz Bergmann. The foundry signature is boldly impressed under the boy's ...
Bronze
Cold Painted Vienna Bronze Young Boy, Signed Bergmann Foundry, ca. 1900
Located in Petaluma, CA
This highly detailed cast and and cold painted Vienna bronze was made by the premier maker of this genre, Franz Bergmann. Signed with his foundry mark on the base. That style base u...
Bronze
Ea Leroy, Cameroonian, Orientalist Bronze Sculpture, Early 20th Century
Located in MARSEILLE, FR
Cameroonian: very beautiful bronze sculpture with brown patina signed EA Leroy Emile Leroy is a traveling artist: in 1923, he joined the workshop of Jean Boucher at the Ecole des ...
Bronze
Zsolnay Bright Yellow and Ochre Glazed Globular Earthenware Ewer
By Zsolnay
Located in Charleston, SC
Zsolnay Bright Yellow and Ochre Glazed Globular Earthenware Ewer A ZSOLNAY BRIGHT YELLOW AND OCHRE GLAZED GLOBULAR EARTHENWARE EWER, WITH GILT DETAIL, roughly 5.5” H, IMPRESSED PECS ...
Earthenware
Moroccan Orange Blue and White Handcrafted Vintage Ceramic Vase
Located in Plainview, NY
This beautiful hand painted decorative vase features a mesmeric arabesque pattern and inviting colors of red, orange and blue. Perfect a as an elegant centerpiece on your dining room...
Ceramic, Paint
$999Sale Price|20% Off
Moroccan Antique Large Tribal Drinking Flask in Polished Brass
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Moroccan antique tribal drinking flask gunpowder large brass flask polished and decorated with semi precious glass stones and filigree metal. Huge antique copper and brass decorative bottle, flask wall hanging sculpture. Large brass circular canteen, water, drinking flask. The front of the brass canteen is decorated with the repoussé technique and hammering and is overlay with brass filigree and semi precious glass stone. Has a two hooks to add a strap. Collector decorative handcrafted drinking, or powder flask...
Brass
Moroccan Amber Footed Glass Perfume Bottle Sprinkler with Embossed Metal Overlay
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Handcrafted Moroccan Moorish amber painted glass perfume bottle or rose water sprinkler with raised embossed silvered metal floral design over amber glass. The pressed glass bottle in Art Deco, Art Nouveau style is oval shape with curved sides and hand decorated with embossed metal silvered overlay. This has a long metal top spout that unscrews. This is a recycled vintage French perfume...
Metal
Pair of Moroccan Ceramic Urns with Arabic Calligraphy Designs
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Pair of Moroccan dark brown ceramic urns with lid from Fez Morocco. Chiseled and hand-carved calligraphy designs ornate the urns in the Ottoman style. Very decorative handmade Mooris...
Ceramic
Large Moroccan Brown and Green Ceramic Jars with Lid a Pair
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Large pair of Moroccan brown and green ceramic urns with lid, handcrafted in Fez Morocco, the green ceramic is hand-etched with Arabic writing calligraphy. This kind of Art Writing looks calligraphic is called Lettrism, it is a form of art that uses letters that are not supposed to mean anything, just put together as Decorative Art. It is just about the beauty of the free writing. Large vintage ceramic jars...
Ceramic
Vintage Moorish Bowl by Berber Tribes of Morocco, Hand-Crafted, 1950
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Vintage decorative Moorish bowl blue and white.
Ceramic
Alp Giroux, Silver-plated Bronze Inkwell, Orientalist, 19th Century
Located in MARSEILLE, FR
Silver-plated bronze inkwell representing a bust of an Arab wearing a turban, which hides the hole for the ink pot, placed on an onyx base This inkwell in the orientalist style is s...
Onyx, Bronze
Hand-Painted Moroccan Dish Circa 1940
Located in West Hollywood, CA
Vintage ceramic Moroccan covered dish. Hand-painted with three colors of blue paint on an ivory glazed finish. Circa 1940
Ceramic
$3,250 / set
Pair of Mid-Century Brass Urns
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Pair of Mid-Century palatial Indian brass urns or stands with Classic form and a brilliant combination of engraving and enamel, in the champlevé manne...
Brass
19th Century French Ormolu Mantle Clock in Orientalist Motif
Located in Nantucket, MA
19th Century French Ormolu Mantle Clock in "Orientalist" Motif, circa 1850, a romantic movement/Orientalist ormolu clock with ornate baroque case surmounted by an Arabic rider on rearing steed, with sabre drawn overhead, an enamel dial with Roman numerals, bell-strike mechanism by F.L. Hausburg, Paris, and marked on dial "Medaille d'Argent, Vincenti and Cie...
Ormolu
20th Century Stoneware Matte Dish with Ornamentals Relief Motifs
Located in Miami, FL
20th century Stoneware Matte dish with ornamentals relief motifs.
Stoneware
$360Sale Price|20% Off
Vintage Brass Moroccan Double Inkwell
Located in San Diego, CA
Double inkwell with brass latched cover with hinged open mechanism. Colorful and intricate patterns abundant in Islamic arts were hand painted on front, s...
Metal
Pair of Large Orientalist Bronze Figures by Emile Pinedo and Marcel Debut
By Émile Pinedo
Located in London, GB
A pair of large Orientalist bronze figures by Emile Pinedo and Marcel Debut French, Late 19th Century Arabe en Marche: height 65cm, width 42cm, depth 28...
Bronze
Late 19th Century Vintage Boho Plaster Bust of Moorish Man
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Infuse your space with eclectic charm using this vintage boho plaster bust of a Moorish man. Crafted with intricate detail and bohemian flair, this piece adds a touch of cultural int...
Plaster
Antique French Orientalist/Moorish Silver/Gilt Bronze and Enamel Figural Clock
Located in New York, NY
A very unusual 19th century antique French orientalist/Moorish silvered bronze, gilt bronze and champleve enamel figural clock, signed Boulez, marks on movement ROBLIN & FILS FRERES,...
Silver, Enamel
Rubin Red Plate Gold Luster Glided Hand Painted Majolica Centerpiece Bowl Deruta
By deBlona
Located in Recanati, IT
The dish, made of majolica painted in duotone of blue and red, features dense decoration, inspired by the Moorish style, throughout its surface. The outer band of the brim is richly ...
Gold Plate
Belle Époque Period Ormolu and Porcelain Mantel Clock in Moorish Style
Located in London, GB
This beautiful clock, formed from gilt bronze and porcelain, is designed and decorated in a discernibly Moorish style. The clock is supported by a flat shaped gilt bronze base, the base supporting four gilt bronze columns that support the gilt bronze clock drum. The cylindrical drum contains a circular dial, the dial of porcelain and inscribed with Roman numerals. The gilt bronze throughout is cast and chased with geometrical motifs—particularly evident on the front of the four vertical columns. These motifs are distinctively Moorish in scheme, the lattice-type geometrical sequences recalling Islamic decorative...
Ormolu, Bronze
Pair of Moroccan Green and Brown Chiselled Ceramic Urns with Handles
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Pair of Moroccan green and brown ceramic urns with lid and handles. Great Moorish style handcrafted and chiselled decorative ceramic urns etched with Arabic calligraphy poetry writin...
Ceramic
Pair of Bronze Candlesticks Figural People Olympic Torch Bearer Women 19"H
Located in Greer, SC
Beautiful pair of bronze candlesticks featuring an Olympic torch bearer. Made from high-quality bronze, making these a unique set to add to your home d...
Bronze