Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Under Napoleon III’s rule, Paris underwent a great rebuilding overseen by Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann, which created grand avenues and lavish landmarks like the Paris Opera. Antique Napoleon III–style furniture was flamboyant and eclectic. It was also known as Second Empire style since it followed and referenced the Empire style of his uncle Napoleon I.
Developing from 1852–70, Napoleon III furniture was plush and ornate, matching the fashion for masked balls and socializing in salons. It borrowed freely from earlier French styles including Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI as well as aesthetics from around the world, from antiquity to Asian art. As writer Gustave Claudin remarked in 1867, the country’s architects worked in “a style which one would be tempted to call neo-Greco-Gothico-Pompadour-Pompeian.”
Napoleon III chairs were completely covered with velvet and lined with tassels; pouf footstools invited people to put up their feet. Sofas were upholstered with tapestries, and beds were adorned with gilt bronze and theatrical canopies. The addition of conservatories to homes led to new indoor-outdoor furniture, while the spirit of hygiene promoted by Baron Haussmann inspired bright, floral motifs.
Although the most ostentatious designs were for the elite, as seen in the Napoleon III apartments preserved in the Louvre, where red velvet, gilding and chandeliers create a cacophony of luxury, these trends influenced homes across classes as manufacturing made design increasingly accessible. Papier-mâché furniture allowed for elaborate shapes that would have been difficult to carve in wood. The malleable material was painted with chinoiserie patterns and decorative designs. It was mass-produced by factories such as Jennens and Bettridge with varnishing and mother-of-pearl inlays creating an effect reminiscent of Asian lacquer. (Surfaces that had been “japanned” — a specialty of Jennens and Bettridge — were intended to resemble lacquer work that was created in East Asia.)
Find a collection of antique Napoleon III decorative objects, tables, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Birch
19th Century English Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Iron
Early 20th Century French Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Bronze
1830s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Glass, Wood, Giltwood
19th Century European Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Agate, Gold
1880s Balkan Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Giltwood
19th Century Italian Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Other
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal, Iron
Early 20th Century Austrian Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Enamel
1860s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Crystal
1880s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Tapestry, Giltwood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Bronze
1890s Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Oak
1890s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Gold
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Iron, Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Stained Glass
1850s European Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Faux Bamboo
1870s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Gold, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
1850s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Bronze, Enamel
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Silver
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Enamel, Ormolu, Bronze
20th Century Italian Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood, Paper
1870s German Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Silk, Down, Satin
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Walnut
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Ormolu
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal, Brass
1890s Italian Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Art Glass
1850s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Silver
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
1940s French Vintage Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Oak
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Bronze, Brass
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Marble, Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Oak
Late 20th Century French Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Ceramic
1990s Italian Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Sterling Silver, Enamel
19th Century European Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Steel
Early 18th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Leather, Fabric, Wicker, Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Paper
1950s Belgian Vintage Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Fabric, Wood
1990s North American Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Satin, Silk
19th Century Italian Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Carrara Marble
20th Century French Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Bronze
1880s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Horn, Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Bronze
1870s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Metal
Early 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Bronze
1870s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Wood
1870s French Antique Napoleon III More Furniture and Collectibles
Glass, Wood