With clean lines and muted colors, antique Gustavian furniture is understated and elegant. It represents a more restrained version of the transition from Rococo to neoclassicism that was happening in France under Louis XVI. The style developed under Swedish King Gustav III, who reigned from 1771 until his assassination in 1792, and his son Gustav IV, who ruled until 1809. Although Gustavian furniture is mostly used to refer to pale painted cabinets, commodes, armchairs and other items, it involved a range of influences.
Gustavian-style furniture was inspired by discoveries at Pompeii and Herculaneum as well as the grandeur of European palaces like Versailles, with local softwoods such as pine and birch. There was also an emphasis on natural light; crystal chandeliers and large mirrors played a role in radiating the fleeting daylight of winter, giving it a distinctive aesthetic.
Where earlier furniture was curvy and florid, this new era was more architectural, with tapered and fluted legs and rectangular and oval shapes. Luminous gilt contrasted with the palette of soft blues on upholstery and painted surfaces. Leading furniture builders included Gottlieb Iwersson, Louis Masreliez and Erik Öhrmark. The latter, a French-born Swedish decorator, designed the Sulla chair, a seat that was demonstrative of technical skill and precise craftsmanship and drew on Greek klismos chairs. Masreliez’s Sulla chair was made by Öhrmark and featured decorative ornamentation produced by Jean-Baptiste Masreliez, Louis’s younger brother.
While the wealthy had furniture carved with neoclassical details like scallops and rosettes, more affordable options were adorned with faux finishes that mimicked marble and stenciled patterns. The simple elegance of Gustavian furniture would have a long impact on Swedish design, informing the 20th-century appreciation for function and form. In the 1950s, IKEA mass-produced copies of a Gustavian commode designed by cabinetmaker Georg Haupt, who created pieces for the Royal Palace, making the furniture a fixture of everyday Swedish life.
Find a collection of antique Gustavian seating, tables, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
18th/19th Century Cranberry and Glass Lantern with Gilt Metal and Cut Glass
Located in Stamford, CT
A large cranberry glass and gilt metal lantern / chandelier composed of late 18th century and early 19th century parts. Having been in its current at least since 1969. Acquired from Denton-Grant, 1969. Christies - Collection of Anthony Hail...
Blown Glass
Antique Swedish 6-Arm Chandelier
Located in Sheffield, MA
Large, elegant and impressive, newly restored antique Swedish Gustavian style chandelier with 6 scrolled arms and gold hanging wood and mult...
Wood
$26,850Sale Price|22% Off
H 44 in Dm 24 in
Palatial French 19th Century Louis XIV Style Gilt Bronze "Versailles" Lantern
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A Large and Palatial French 19th century Louis XIV style gilt bronze and panelled bevelled glass "Versailles" style single grand hall hanging lantern. The elongated and wide body sur...
Bronze
$12,850
H 30 in Dm 12.25 in
A Royal French 19th-20th Century Gilt-Bronze & Glass "Versailles" Style Lantern
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A fine Royal French 19th-20th century gilt bronze and molded cut-glass "Versailles" style single-light hanging lantern, in the manner of Baccarat. The elongated molded and cut-glass ...
Bronze
Antique French Chinoiserie Style Ormolu and Chinese Porcelain Chandelier
Located in New York, NY
A unique antique French Chinoiserie style chandelier composed of ormolu mounts and Chinese porcelain elements. The chandelier is suspended by four ormolu supports connected with porc...
Bronze
French, 18th/ 19th Century Metal Lantern
Located in Buisson, FR
Very rare metal lantern, France, circa 1750- 1850. Weathered, small losses and some old repairs. Lantern can be opened on one side. Glass of later date. H:40,5cm W:26,5cm D:12cm
Metal
$6,895Sale Price|30% Off
H 31.5 in Dm 22 in
Fine French Belle Époque 19th-20th Century Gilt-Bronze and Cut-Glass Chandelier
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A fine French Belle Époque 19th-20th century three-light gilt-bronze and cut-glass basket chandelier. The circular basket shaped banded gilt-bronze frame surmounted with three scroll...
Brass, Bronze
$1,245Sale Price|52% Off
H 22.05 in W 12.21 in D 12.21 in
1960s, Crystal and Brass Cylinder Chandelier by Orrefors for Tyringe, Sweden
By Orrefors, Konsthantverk Tyringe 1
Located in Silvolde, Gelderland
Beautiful and in perfect condition brass chandelier or pendant with twelve crystal cylinders. Designed and manufactured in by Tyringe Konsthantverk, Sweden. All crystal cylinders a...
Crystal, Brass
Fine Antique French Empire Neoclassical Gilt and Patina Bronze Chandelier
Located in New York, NY
A fine antique French Empire neoclassical gilt and patina bronze chandelier. The chandelier is suspended from a circular corona decorated with a continuous band of gilt laurel leaves...
Bronze
Exceptional Late 19th Century Gilt Bronze Palatial Eight Light Lantern
Located in Long Island City, NY
An Exceptional Late 19th Century Gilt Bronze Palatial Eight Light Lantern The large and important frame designed with a crowned top with acanthus leaves and berries, the body surrounded by wreaths and garlands with flowers and foliage that are finished on both sides, the inside with eight tiered lights each with spiral arms. This unique bronze lantern is the largest and most important lantern...
Bronze
$2,950
H 25.5 in Dm 13.5 in
French Mid-20th Century Louis XIV Style Gilt-Metal & Glass "Versailles" Lantern
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A French mid-20th century Louis XIV style gilt-metal and molded glass "Versailles" style single-light hanging hall lantern. The elongated blown glass body banded with gilt-metal stri...
Metal
$9,850Sale Price|46% Off
H 38 in Dm 20.5 in
French, 19th-20th Century Louis XV Style Gilt Bronze and Glass Lantern
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A very fine French 19th-20th century Louis XV style pear-shaped gilt bronze and diamond-cut-bent-glass lantern. The ovoid gilt bronze body with a single light, surmounted with three glass panels centered with a sunburst design. The scrolled gilt bronze body with scrolls, acanthus, rosettes and leaves, each panel crowned with gilt bronze bows and ribbons...
Bronze
$19,800
H 32 in Dm 21 in
A Fine Antique French Neoclassical Style Carved Alabaster and Bronze Chandelier
Located in New York, NY
A fine antique French neoclassical style carved alabaster and bronze chandelier. The chandelier is composed of a carved alabaster bowl-form body suspended from a series of patinated ...
Alabaster, Bronze
$6,985Sale Price|26% Off
H 34.25 in Dm 24.5 in
French Belle Époque Gilt Bronze and Cut-Glass Six-Arm Figural Basket Chandelier
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A French Belle Époque gilt bronze and cut-glass six-arm figural basket chandelier. The elongated gilt-bronze frame with six candle-arms with glass wax-drip plates, surmouted with int...
Bronze
Antique Lantan from Sweden
Located in Tokyo, Tokyo
Swedish antique lantern. It is designed to be able to remove the bottom plate, you can use it as it is today, replacing the candle as it is.
Glass, Wood
Swedish Painted Gilt Iron Lantern
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Swedish gray painted iron and glass lantern. The simple lines of this fixture will work in any style home. The lantern has been newly rewired and is ready to install. The chain and c...
Wrought Iron
Pair of 19th Century Gustavian Column Lantern
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
Pair of Gustavian column lantern, light fixtures are new, columns are period.
Sheet Metal
Swedish opaline glass lantern, circa 1810
Located in Stockholm, SE
A late Swedish gustavian opaline glass lantern with gilt bronze mounts. There are 3 candle arms and one in the middle The glass painted with figures in sepia. Made circa 1810.
Ormolu