Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Under Napoleon III’s rule, Paris underwent a great rebuilding overseen by Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann, which created grand avenues and lavish landmarks like the Paris Opera. Antique Napoleon III–style furniture was flamboyant and eclectic. It was also known as Second Empire style since it followed and referenced the Empire style of his uncle Napoleon I.
Developing from 1852–70, Napoleon III furniture was plush and ornate, matching the fashion for masked balls and socializing in salons. It borrowed freely from earlier French styles including Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI as well as aesthetics from around the world, from antiquity to Asian art. As writer Gustave Claudin remarked in 1867, the country’s architects worked in “a style which one would be tempted to call neo-Greco-Gothico-Pompadour-Pompeian.”
Napoleon III chairs were completely covered with velvet and lined with tassels; pouf footstools invited people to put up their feet. Sofas were upholstered with tapestries, and beds were adorned with gilt bronze and theatrical canopies. The addition of conservatories to homes led to new indoor-outdoor furniture, while the spirit of hygiene promoted by Baron Haussmann inspired bright, floral motifs.
Although the most ostentatious designs were for the elite, as seen in the Napoleon III apartments preserved in the Louvre, where red velvet, gilding and chandeliers create a cacophony of luxury, these trends influenced homes across classes as manufacturing made design increasingly accessible. Papier-mâché furniture allowed for elaborate shapes that would have been difficult to carve in wood. The malleable material was painted with chinoiserie patterns and decorative designs. It was mass-produced by factories such as Jennens and Bettridge with varnishing and mother-of-pearl inlays creating an effect reminiscent of Asian lacquer. (Surfaces that had been “japanned” — a specialty of Jennens and Bettridge — were intended to resemble lacquer work that was created in East Asia.)
Find a collection of antique Napoleon III decorative objects, tables, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Wood, Paper
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
Late 19th Century European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Rubber
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Crystal, Bronze, Ormolu
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Brass
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Ormolu
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze, Enamel, Ormolu
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze, Ormolu, Enamel
1850s European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
19th Century European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain, Wood
1960s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Gold, Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
Late 19th Century European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Glass, Rosewood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
1970s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver, Enamel
1870s European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Wood, Burl
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble, Carrara Marble
1890s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze, Enamel
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Wood, Burl
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Griotte Marble, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Other
1890s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Walnut
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze, Enamel
1980s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver, Enamel
1880s Italian Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble, Bronze
Late 19th Century European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Ceramic, Porcelain
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Metal, Bronze, Enamel, Ormolu
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porphyry, Bronze, Ormolu
Late 19th Century European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble, Bronze
1870s European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Crystal, Bronze
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Gold, Bronze
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble, Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Brass
Early 1900s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze, Enamel
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze, Enamel
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Ormolu
Mid-20th Century Austrian Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Gold
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Crystal, Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Brass
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Wood
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze