Screens and Room Dividers
1850s European Napoleon III Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Faux Bamboo
1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Bamboo
1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Cane, Mirror
1970s French Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Lacquer
1970s Brazilian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Leather, Rosewood
19th Century Directoire Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Brass
1870s French Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
Early 19th Century British Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
1890s Indian Anglo-Indian Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Hardwood
Early 19th Century British Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Rosewood
Mid-19th Century French Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wood, Paint
19th Century Japanese Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Paper
19th Century English Victorian Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Upholstery, Walnut
Late 19th Century Indian Anglo Raj Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Hardwood
19th Century French Louis XV Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Bronze
Early 19th Century Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Canvas, Wood
19th Century Tibetan Other Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
Early 19th Century Regency Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Metal
1970s Italian Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Mirror, Wood
Early 19th Century British Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
Early 19th Century British Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Walnut
Late 19th Century Austrian Art Nouveau Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Beech, Bentwood
1970s Spanish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Bamboo
1890s French Art Nouveau Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Paint
19th Century English Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Mahogany
19th Century French Louis XV Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Giltwood, Paint
1970s French Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Mirror, Wood
1870s Moroccan Aesthetic Movement Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Mother-of-Pearl, Wood
Mid-19th Century Chinese Qing Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Glass, Hardwood
Mid-19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Silk, Giltwood
1970s Italian Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Chrome
19th Century French Louis XIV Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Paper
1970s Czech Mid-Century Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Metal
19th Century Chinese Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
Mid-19th Century French Louis Philippe Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Ironstone
19th Century French Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Bronze
Early 19th Century British Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Mahogany
1850s French Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Giltwood
1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Burl
Mid-19th Century Victorian Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Mirror
Late 19th Century English Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wool, Wood, Walnut
Late 19th Century Chinese Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Silk
Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Bronze
19th Century English Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Tapestry, Mahogany
Late 19th Century English Arts and Crafts Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Birch
1970s Italian Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Terracotta, Rosewood
1970s Italian Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Seagrass, Bamboo
Mid-19th Century European Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Rosewood, Wood, Wool
Late 19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Gold Leaf
Mid-19th Century Portuguese Other Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Wood
1970s American Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
Silver
Mid-19th Century Japanese Edo Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Paper
1890s Napoleon III Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Oak
19th Century American Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Late 19th Century English Victorian Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Brass
Mid-19th Century French Art Deco Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Ironstone
Early 19th Century European Gothic Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Oak, Paint
1850s English Victorian Antique Screens and Room Dividers
Walnut
Antique and Vintage Screens and Room Dividers
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.