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Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

NEOCLASSICAL STYLE

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.

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Style: Neoclassical
18th Century French or Swiss Military Watercolor, Signed and Dated
Located in Stamford, CT
Very interesting drawing of two soldiers in uniform one most likely French holding a rifle with bayonet and the other, Swiss, dressed in a fancy red outfit with codpiece and odd hat holding a menacing looking mace. Behind them on either side are burning castles...
Category

Late 18th Century French Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

18th Century Carved Wooden Representing Christ on the Cross
Located in Miami, FL
Carved wooden representing Christ on the cross.
Category

Late 18th Century Spanish Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Wood, Paint

A Monumental Italian Neoclassic Triumphal Military Wall Plaque
Located in New York, NY
Roman fruitwood trophy wall plaque carved with the forms of armor, halberds, and other military regalia.
Category

18th Century and Earlier Italian Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Fruitwood

18kts Gold Broock in Losange with Garnet Cabochon
Located in Madrid, ES
18-karat gold clasp in losange with garnet cabochon. Rhomboid brooch decorated with vegetal elements and gold pearls in a particular arrangement of hollows inspired by veneras, with...
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Late 19th Century European Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Gold

19th century American Southern Portrait by Benoni Irwin
By Benoni Irwin
Located in Savannah, GA
Oil on canvas portrait entitled:Mr. Bowles of Kentucky, painted by Benoni Irwin (1840-1896) an American portraitist born in new market, Ontario, Canada. He moved to New York as a you...
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Late 19th Century American Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Wood

Italian 18th Century Relic Stand of Carved Wood & Silver Plate
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
Italian relic stand from the 1700s! Made of carved wood with detailed silver plate decorating the front side of this wonderful relic stand with Lou...
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18th Century Italian Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Silver Plate, Iron

Bright Stars American Painting and Sculpture Since 1776 Hardcover Book
Located in North Hollywood, CA
Bright stars: American painting and sculpture since 1776 Hardcover - January 1, 1976 by Jean Lipman (Author), Helen M. Franc (Author), John I. H. Baur (Introduction) Publisher: E. ...
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Late 20th Century American Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Paper

Continental Wood Pocket Sundial and Compass 1780ca
Located in Firenze, IT
A carved Continental wood pocket sundial and compass, with precision carved numbers and a small stringline, 1.5 cm high, 6.5 cm wide, 4.5 cm deep
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1780s German Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Wood

20th Century "The Last Supper" Metal Relief
Located in Miami, FL
"The Last Supper" metal relief.
Category

Early 20th Century European Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Metal

Antique WWII B24 Liberator Bomber Airplane Aviation Fuselage Shadowbox
Located in Dayton, OH
Antique World War II era United States Army Air Force airplane fuselage segment, mounted in a shadowbox frame and featuring the stars and bars decal ...
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1940s Vintage Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Metal

Historic Antique Civil War Walking Stick Cane of General Joe Hooker
Located in Dayton, OH
"Very rare antique 18th century wood walking stick, staff or cane once owned by General Joe Hooker. Engraved silver band reads Gen. Joe Hooker. Measure: 35". A history of the cane is included which reads: “This cane was given to Chaplain Earnshaw by the family of General Joseph Hooker, who commanded the English Forces at the Battle of Chancellorsville (which he lost.) The shaft of the cane was made from the “poop” of the vessel of John Paul Jones. The handle was made from the horn of a buffalo that General Grant shot. General Hooker died with the cane in his hands as he walked down stairs. Two battles later which ended in Gettysburg, the Norths cause was settled. General grant was put in command.” Province Estate of J. Frederic Gagel, owner of multiple Thoroughbred race horses that competed in the Narragansett Special and Kentucky Derby. Their family heritage was strongly intertwined with the military having officers in battles dating back to the American Revolution. John Paul Jones (born John Paul; July 6, 1747 – July 18, 1792) was a Scottish-American naval captain who was the United States' first well-known naval commander in the American Revolutionary War. He made many friends among U.S political elites (including John Hancock[1] and Benjamin Franklin[2]) as well as enemies (who accused him of piracy), and his actions in British waters during the Revolution earned him an international reputation that persists to this day. As such, he is sometimes referred to as the ""Father of the American Navy"" (a nickname he shares with John Barry and John Adams[3]). Jones Jones was born and raised in Scotland, became a sailor at the age of thirteen, and served as commander of several merchantmen. After having killed one of his mutinous crew members with a sword, he fled to the Colony of Virginia and around 1775 joined the newly founded Continental Navy in their fight against the Kingdom of Great Britain in the American Revolutionary War. He commanded U.S. Navy ships stationed in France, led one failed assault on Britain, and several attacks on British merchant ships. Left without a command in 1787, he joined the Imperial Russian Navy and obtained the rank of rear admiral. Hooker “Joseph Hooker (November 13, 1814 – October 31, 1879) was an American Civil War officer / general for the Union, chiefly remembered for his decisive defeat by Confederate General Robert E. Lee at the Battle of Chancellorsville in 1863. Hooker had served in the Seminole Wars and the Mexican–American War, receiving three brevet promotions, before resigning from the Army. At the start of the Civil War, he joined the Union side as a brigadier general, distinguishing himself at Williamsburg, Antietam and Fredericksburg, after which he was given command of the Army of the Potomac...
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19th Century Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Hardwood

Placide Poussielgue-Rusand, Paris, -19th century
Located in Säffle, SE
PLACIDE-BENOIT-MARIE POUSSIELGUE-RUSAND (Paris 1824-1889 Paris) Chalice Placide Poussielgue-Rusand (1824-1889), was a gold & silversmith in Paris. He is known mainly for his litur...
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Late 19th Century French Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Silver, Brass

Weber Upright Piano Flame Mahogany Fluted Legs Stylised Neoclassical Inlay
Located in Leeds, GB
A 1912, Weber upright piano for sale with a figured, mahogany case. Piano has fluted Doric style piano legs with an urn shaped pedestal. Entire cabinet is inlaid in a variety of woods with stylised Neoclassical motifs and geometric forms. The front panel is inlaid with a central oval and inverted scalloped stringing, surrounded by crossbanded hexagons and circles. The piano fall features stringing in a classical meander. The key escutcheon is surrounded by swagged bellflowers. Swagged bellflowers also adorn the square piano cheeks. The base of the piano fall is inlaid with a scrolling guilloche punctuated with trefoils. The piano top rim is inlaid with crossbanded satinwood with circular inserts. Piano has an eighty-eight keyboard and two pedals. Neoclassicism draws inspiration from the art and culture of classical antiquity. European Neoclassicism began c. 1760 in opposition to the then-dominant Rococo style. Rococo architecture...
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Early 20th Century English Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Mahogany

A Rare and Important American Marble Sculpture of Thomas Jefferson, Circa 1870
Located in New York, NY
A Rare and Important American White Marble Sculpture of Thomas Jefferson Holding The Declaration of Independence. Circa 1870, in the Manner of Horatio Stone (1808 –1875). Inscribed on scroll: 'The Declaration of Independence, It becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another. etc. etc. T. Jefferson. The present work is unsigned but is reminiscent of Horatio Stone's life-size marble figure of John Hancock...
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19th Century American Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Marble

19th Century Italian Gilded Holy Water Font with Putti Angel Saints and Shell
Located in Milan, IT
From Italy a stunning gilt bronze holy water font dating back to the first half of 19th century. An ormolu group sculpture depicting an unusual ...
Category

Mid-19th Century European Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Bronze

American Miniature Tilt Top Miniature Table/Candle Stand by Thomas Clowney, 1840
Located in Kenilworth, IL
Miniature mahogany Classic Revival tilt top circular pedestal table or candle stand. Attributed to Thomas Clowney, Mineral Point, Wisconsin. America, circa 1840. Materials: Ma...
Category

1840s American Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Mahogany

Antique Bronze Portrait Plaque of George Washington, C 1880
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Antique bronze portrait plaque of George Washington, C 1890 Possibly after Jean-Antoine Houdon, finely cast side profile with Washington's hai...
Category

Late 19th Century American Antique Neoclassical Collectibles and Curiosities

Materials

Bronze

Neoclassical collectibles and curiosities for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a broad range of unique Neoclassical collectibles and curiosities for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage collectibles and curiosities created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include more furniture and collectibles, decorative objects, wall decorations and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with metal, wood and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Neoclassical collectibles and curiosities made in a specific country, there are Europe, North America, and United States pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original collectibles and curiosities, popular names associated with this style include Choisy-le-Roi, Creil et Montereau, Theodore Roosevelt, and Assouline Publishing. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for collectibles and curiosities differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $49 and tops out at $1,200,000 while the average work can sell for $1,300.

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