Screens and Room Dividers
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Plywood
1990s German Screens and Room Dividers
Iron
Early 20th Century Indian Anglo-Indian Screens and Room Dividers
Teak
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Walnut
1980s Thai Japonisme Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Gold Leaf
1970s American Art Deco Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Stone, Brass
1940s Japanese Art Deco Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary British Minimalist Screens and Room Dividers
Aluminum
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Iron
21st Century and Contemporary German Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Stainless Steel
21st Century and Contemporary Finnish Mid-Century Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Wood, Pine
1950s French Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Wrought Iron
Early 20th Century European Arts and Crafts Screens and Room Dividers
Wrought Iron, Iron, Metal
21st Century and Contemporary Argentine Screens and Room Dividers
Parchment Paper
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Plywood
Mid-20th Century Chinoiserie Screens and Room Dividers
Canvas
Mid-20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Brass
Mid-20th Century Japanese Screens and Room Dividers
Wood, Paper
Mid-20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Wood, Paper
Mid-20th Century Mid-Century Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Plywood
Mid-20th Century Hong Kong Chinoiserie Screens and Room Dividers
Brass
19th Century Japanese Meiji Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Gold Leaf
Mid-20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary British Minimalist Screens and Room Dividers
Aluminum
Late 20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Leather, Wood
Early 19th Century Chinese Chinese Export Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
Mid-20th Century Swedish Art Deco Screens and Room Dividers
Birch
Late 20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Leather
Early 20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
Mid-20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
1970s American Folk Art Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Canvas, Wood
19th Century Dutch Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Walnut
Late 19th Century English Victorian Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Leather, Oak
Early 20th Century Screens and Room Dividers
Wood, Paint, Paper
Early 1900s British Arts and Crafts Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Walnut
Late 20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Wood, Paper
Mid-20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Leather, Wood
Mid-20th Century Japanese Showa Screens and Room Dividers
Brass, Gold Leaf
1970s Belgian Post-Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Concrete, Steel
1960s American Organic Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Shell
18th Century French Louis XVI Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Canvas, Wood
Late 20th Century Japanese Showa Screens and Room Dividers
Iron
Mid-20th Century Chinese Chinese Export Screens and Room Dividers
Lacquer
Mid-20th Century French Art Deco Screens and Room Dividers
Lacquer
1990s American Post-Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Steel
Late 19th Century Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Hardwood, Paper
Mid-20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Brass
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Walnut
19th Century English Edwardian Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Cotton, Mahogany
1950s Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Brass
Mid-20th Century Chinese Art Deco Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
2010s Italian Mid-Century Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Resin
1940s Japanese Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
20th Century Chinese Palladian Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
Late 20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Canvas, Wood
20th Century Spanish Mid-Century Modern Screens and Room Dividers
Bamboo, Wicker, Rattan, Cane
Mid-20th Century Chinese Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
19th Century Japanese Meiji Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Silk, Wood, Paper
Vintage Screens and Antique Room Dividers on 1stDibs: Japanese Screens, Chinese Screens and Art Deco Screens for Sale
Whether they are implemented as decorative accents or makeshift partitions to ensure privacy, antique and vintage folding screens and room dividers easily introduce sophistication and depth to any space in your home.
The earliest examples of folding screens are said to have originated in China and go back at least as far as the Han dynasty. Screens of the era were heavy structures made of wood and had hinges of cloth or leather. They were adorned with elaborate landscape paintings that were typically created on silk or paper canvases and applied directly to the screen’s panels afterward. Just as they had been in the 20th century and today, the folding screens then were recognized for both their practical and purely decorative properties.
Japanese room-divider screens were also decorated with paintings but constructed to be lightweight and mobile. They took on considerable event-based importance when the structures gained popularity in the East Asian country, as the folding screens were used in performing arts such as concerts, tea ceremonies and more. Later, artists elsewhere warmed to folding screens and sought to create their own.
In European countries such as France, where they were known as paravent, folding screens began to materialize in apartments in Paris, gaining favor with the likes of pioneering couturier Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel, who is said to have accrued more than 30 and used them as a precursor to what we now know as wallpaper.
On 1stDibs, find a wide range of antique and vintage folding screens and room dividers, which, given their history, may do a better job of bringing people and cultures together in your home than sectioning off a space. Search by material to find options in metal, fabric or wood, or browse by style for mid-century modern designs and examples from the Art Deco era.