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.
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Rosewood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Opaline Glass
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Enamel
1980s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver, Enamel
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
Early 20th Century Austrian Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Enamel
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Ceramic
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Brass
1970s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Enamel, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Pewter
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble, Bronze
1880s Italian Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
1970s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver, Enamel
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Opaline Glass
Late 19th Century Spanish Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Terracotta
1980s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Gold, Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze, Ormolu
Early 20th Century French Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Brass
1940s French Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Leather, Shell, Wood
19th Century Danish Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
1960s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Gold, Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
1890s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Art Glass
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
1880s Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
1980s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Gold Plate, Sterling Silver, Enamel
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Glass
1860s European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Wood
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Terracotta
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
1880s European Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Glass
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
1890s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble, Belgian Black Marble, Griotte Marble
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Crystal, Silver
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Bronze
Early 20th Century French Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Ceramic
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Wood, Burl
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Porcelain
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Walnut
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Enamel
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Marble, Bronze
Early 20th Century Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Glass
1980s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Sterling Silver, Enamel
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Decorative Objects
Brass