Neoclassical Pottery
Neoclassical design emerged in Europe in the 1750s, as the Age of Enlightenment reached full flower. Neoclassical furniture took its cues from the styles of ancient Rome and Athens: symmetrical, ordered, dignified forms with such details as tapered and fluted chair and table legs, backrest finials and scrolled arms.
Over a period of some 20 years, first in France and later in Britain, neoclassical design — also known as Louis XVI, or Louis Seize — would supersede the lithe and curvaceous Rococo or Louis XV style.
The first half of the 18th century had seen a rebirth of interest in classical antiquity. The "Grand Tour" of Europe, codified as a part of the proper education of a patrician gentleman, included an extended visit to Rome. Some ventured further, to sketch the ruins of ancient Greece. These drawings and others — particularly those derived from the surprising and rich archaeological discoveries in the 1730s and ’40s at the sites of the Roman cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum — caused great excitement among intellectuals and aesthetes alike.
Neoclassical furniture is meant to reflect both grace and power. The overall appearance of neoclassical chairs, tables and cabinetry is strong and rectilinear. These pieces are, in effect, classical architecture in miniature: chair and table legs are shaped like columns; cabinets are constructed with elements that mirror friezes and pediments.
Yet neoclassicism is enlivened by gilt and silver leaf, marquetry, and carved and applied ornamental motifs based on Greek and Roman sculpture: acanthus leaves, garlands, laurel wreaths, sheaves of arrow, medallions and chair splats are carved in the shapes of lyres and urns. Ormolu — or elaborate bronze gilding — was essential to French design in the 18th and 19th centuries as a cornerstone of the neoclassical and Empire styles.
As you can see from the furniture on these pages, there is a bit of whimsy in such stately pieces — a touch of lightness that will always keep neoclassicism fresh.
Find antique neoclassical furniture today on 1stDibs.
1980s English Vintage Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Early 20th Century English Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Early 19th Century British Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Earthenware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Creamware
Late 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
1770s English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Creamware, Pottery
1780s English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pottery
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pottery
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
1790s English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
1980s English Vintage Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Early 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pearlware, Pottery
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
1870s English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
1780s English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 20th Century Italian Neoclassical Pottery
Ceramic, Pottery
1880s English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pottery
Late 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Bronze
1970s French Vintage Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
1910s English Vintage Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Mid-19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pearlware, Pottery
Mid-19th Century American Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Iron
20th Century English Neoclassical Pottery
Pottery
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Early 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pearlware, Pottery
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Earthenware
Early 20th Century English Neoclassical Pottery
Terracotta
Early 19th Century Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pearlware, Pottery
Mid-19th Century European Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pearlware, Pottery
Early 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Earthenware, Creamware
Early 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Mid-19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Mid-19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pottery
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Mid-19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
21st Century and Contemporary English Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
1780s English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Early 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Mid-18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Mid-19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pearlware, Pottery
1820s English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Early 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Stoneware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Creamware
Early 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pearlware, Pottery
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Earthenware
Late 18th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Creamware
Early 19th Century English Antique Neoclassical Pottery
Pearlware, Pottery