Bookends
1950s Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Brass
Late 20th Century American Bookends
Leather
19th Century North American Georgian Antique Bookends
Leather
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Brass
Early 20th Century American American Colonial Bookends
Metal
1930s French Art Deco Vintage Bookends
Marble, Spelter
1930s French Art Deco Vintage Bookends
Spelter
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Metal
1930s American Art Deco Vintage Bookends
Spelter
19th Century Georgian Antique Bookends
Leather
Early 20th Century French Empire Bookends
Marble, Metal
20th Century Folk Art Bookends
Alabaster
1920s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Marble, Spelter
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Brass
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Art Glass
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Modern Bookends
Metal
20th Century Italian Renaissance Revival Bookends
Alabaster, Marble
Late 20th Century Italian Hollywood Regency Bookends
Plaster
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Steel
1920s French Art Deco Vintage Bookends
Bronze
Late 19th Century Spanish Baroque Antique Bookends
Mid-20th Century French Art Deco Bookends
Marble, Spelter
1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary Austrian Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Brass
1920s American Art Deco Vintage Bookends
Iron
1930s French Art Deco Vintage Bookends
Marble, Spelter
20th Century Spanish Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Brass
Late 20th Century American Bookends
Bronze
Late 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Travertine
20th Century American Hollywood Regency Bookends
Glass
Early 20th Century French Art Deco Bookends
Marble, Metal
2010s Ecuadorean Pre-Columbian Bookends
Bronze
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Aluminum
1940s Chinese Hollywood Regency Vintage Bookends
Brass
1980s American Vintage Bookends
Ceramic
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Bookends
Earthenware
1960s Austrian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Bookends
Petrified Wood
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Alabaster
Early 20th Century French Art Deco Bookends
Marble, Brass
15th Century and Earlier Unknown Organic Modern Antique Bookends
Petrified Wood
Early 20th Century French Art Deco Bookends
Marble, Spelter
Late 20th Century Indian Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Marble, Brass
Early 20th Century French Art Deco Bookends
Siena Marble, Metal
Late 19th Century French Empire Antique Bookends
Marble, Bronze
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Brass
Mid-20th Century French Art Deco Bookends
Wood, Ebony
20th Century American Bookends
Iron
Mid-20th Century Japanese Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Metal
Early 20th Century French Bookends
Bronze
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Marble
1980s Unknown Art Deco Vintage Bookends
Onyx
1960s Swedish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Bookends
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Bronze
Mid-20th Century Austrian Mid-Century Modern Bookends
Brass
21st Century and Contemporary Indonesian Bookends
Petrified Wood
Mid-20th Century American Bookends
Marble
1920s Belgian Arts and Crafts Vintage Bookends
Brass
1920s German Art Deco Vintage Bookends
Ceramic
Antique, New and Vintage Bookends
A good pair of antique, new or vintage bookends will look wonderful in your reading nook. And the need for these trusty home accents has stood the test of time, which means there are many different kinds to suit any design taste or furniture style.
Bookends weren’t created until the 1870s. Serving faithfully in the background, they went unobserved for a while. The authors of the Oxford English Dictionary report that the term “book end” didn’t appear in printed material until 1907. The primary function of bookends is to ensure that your books remain upright in your bookcase, but style and form have taken the lead over the years. Furniture makers have ensured that bookends demand as much attention as the books themselves. Indeed, while competing with carefully curated first editions or rows of colorful spines is no small task, plenty of bookends steal the stage.
If you’re looking to add a dose of intrigue or decorative flourish to your reading room that will be difficult to ignore, stone bookends and metal bookends can take on the appearance of small, provocative sculptures rather than functional accessories to keep your books orderly on your shelves. Depending on what kind of textures you’re thinking of introducing to your home office or study, a pair of brass bookends or a bronze set will pop against your dusty hardcovers and any decorative objects you’ve accumulated while working to style your bookcase. A pair of mid-century modern bookends carved from dark, exotic woods such as teak can also introduce warmth to a home office or study. While teak was a favorite of designers who worked with furniture in the mid-20th century, all manner of wood bookends have emerged over the years, with some woodworkers carving ornate patterns or figures into their pieces.
Bookworms, take note: You can find an extraordinary range of antique, new and vintage bookends for your dazzling book displays and bookshelves today on 1stDibs.