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Seating For Sale
Style: Empire
Style: Late Victorian
Empire Style Mahogany Library Tub Fauteuil de Bureau or Desk Chair
Located in Nashville, TN
Of generous proportions and presence . The front mounted with well cast bronze mounts (of some size and weight ). The top with French interpretations of the Greek Caryatids (very att...
Category

Late 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Wood

Italian Midcentury Empire Style Painted and Upholstered Bench with Ram Heads
Located in Atlanta, GA
An Italian midcentury Empire style painted bench with carved ram heads and new upholstery. This exquisite Italian painted bench features a nicely curved seat that has been recovered ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Italian Empire Seating

Materials

Upholstery, Wood

Pair of Ornate Hand Carved Solid Wood circa 1900 American Eagle Armchairs
Located in GB
We are delighted to offer for sale this lovely pair of extremely ornate hand carved American eagle armchairs. What can I say, these have to be the mo...
Category

Early 1900s English Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Wood

20th Century Empire Style Lion Kanapee Sofa
Located in Berlin, DE
Imperial stylish lion Kanapee in Empire style. Finely detailed carving work on solid ebonized beechwood. Gilded. Winged, protruding lions heads in bronze. (B-Sam-60).
Category

20th Century Empire Seating

Materials

Wood, Beech

Eight Dining Empire Style Chairs Upholstered French Elm and Burr Elm, circa 1920
Located in Labrit, Landes
Set of eight French dining chairs circa 1920 Empire style, solid elm and elm burr They can be recovered to suit your interior. In very good condition, solid and sound. Shippin...
Category

Early 20th Century French Empire Seating

Materials

Upholstery, Elm

Restored Victorian Hand Dyed Brown Leather Sofa Claw & Ball Feet Feather Cushion
Located in GB
We are delighted to this stunning fully restored late Victorian club sofa with Thomas Chippendale style claw & ball feet A truly remarkable find, I have only ever seen one or two ...
Category

Late 19th Century English Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Leather

Antique American Flame Mahogany and Cane Empire Period Recamier or Chaise Longue
Located in Charleston, SC
Rare and important antique American flame mahogany and cane Empire period recamier or chaise longue, acquired from and made for the Charleston ...
Category

Early 19th Century American Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany, Cane

Set of Three Elegant Mahogany, Empire Style Chairs, One Pair and a Single Chair
Located in New York, NY
Gorgeous chairs white great patina and beautiful lines on these Swedish Empire style chairs. They are late 1800s, early 1900s Swedish. We can recover chair for you on request. Touch ...
Category

Early 20th Century European Empire Seating

Materials

Mahogany

Italian 19th Century Marquetry and Bronze Empire Side Chair
Located in Brescia, IT
Back decorated in various inlaid woods showing vines, flowers etc., The tops of the back chair rails are mounted with eagle heads, and are joined together with a turned gilded deco...
Category

1840s Italian Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Wood

Antique Empire Custom Painted Sofa
Located in New York, NY
Custom painted Empire sofa. Sofa has a down filled seat cushion. Legs and frame has carvings.
Category

19th Century American Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Upholstery, Wood

Outstanding Antique 19th Century Victorian Antique Mahogany Inlaid Armchair
Located in Suffolk, GB
Outstanding antique 19th century Victorian antique mahogany inlaid armchair having an unusual beautifully shaped top rail with a quality satinwood inlaid panel. It boasts a pretty he...
Category

Late 19th Century English Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Other

Pair of French Empire Style Side Chairs
Located in New York, NY
Pair of elegant French Empire style side chairs. The chairs are burl with bronze mounts and feet. The black section to the front of the legs i...
Category

Early 20th Century French Empire Seating

Materials

Bronze

Museum Court Empire Armchair circa 1830, Mahogany
Located in Berlin, DE
Museum court Empire armchair circa 1830, mahogany Solid mahogany body. Empire beginning of the 19th century. Armrests, curved volute-shaped, ending in carved dolphins. Rectangular backrest framing flanked by classicist carved lion heads and elaborately inlaid brass inlays in the form of acanthus leaves below. Straight frame on baluster and saber legs, some of which are also inlaid with brass. Scattered rich and intricately inlaid brass inlays. The seat and backrest are classically upholstered and covered with a fine velvet upholstery fabric. Untouched original condition. Such a piece of furniture is indeed part of the courtly inventory, see comparable model, literature reference: German classicism...
Category

Early 19th Century German Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Brass

19th Century France Furnished Armchair Group
Located in Berlin, DE
Solid maple. Curved frame on curly legs. Strong curved supports in rolled volutes ending for slightly rising armrests. High-profile, contoured backrest frame with a wide finish. Seat...
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Wood, Maple

19th Century Empire Style Gilt X Frame Stool
Located in Chillerton, Isle of Wight
19th century Empire style gilt X frame stool. A superb antique neoclassical X frame stool in the Empire style, the stool has relatively new upholstery and the show wood is carved ...
Category

Late 19th Century Empire Antique Seating

Pair of Early Chiavari Chairs by Giuseppe Gaetano Descalzi
Located in Sharon, CT
Extraordinary light and strong, probably out of rosewood. Early version in untouched condition. Missing their rush seating-one chair retains remnants of early (if not original) rushing. These chairs were originally designed in 1807! in answer to a Challenge to design a 'modern' chair. These chairs were very popular amongst the nobility in the 19th century, and were the model for Gio Ponti's update Classic Super Leggera Chair.
Category

Early 19th Century Italian Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Wood

Set of Three Antique Empire Side Chairs, 19th Century, Biedermeier
Located in Berlin, DE
Set of three antique Empire side chairs, 19th century, Biedermeier.
Category

19th Century Empire Antique Seating

French Empire Solid Mahogany Regency Side Chairs Figural Bronze Ormolu, a Pair
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Antique French Empire solid mahogany Regency side chairs with figural bronze ormolu - a pair. Item features finely cast ornate bronze ormolu, slightly curved backrest, solid wood fra...
Category

Late 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Bronze

Pair of French Empire Style Carved Fruitwood Open Armchairs
Located in Pittsburgh, PA
This pair of 19th century fruitwood armchairs feature carved acanthus leaves and reeded arms.
Category

Late 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Fruitwood

20th Century antique French Empire Salon Ameublement with Two Armchairs carved
Located in Berlin, DE
Solid beechwood, carved, colored and gilded. Cambered frame on curly legs. Braced supports for slightly rising armrests ending in rolled-up volutes. High-rimmed, slightly curved ...
Category

20th Century French Empire Seating

Materials

Beech

19th Century Empire Tub Armchair
Located in Belmont, MA
Unique Empire tub armchair, circa 1820, mahogany with finely carved details. Newly upholstered with beautiful crème colored fabric.
Category

1810s French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

Elegant Swedish Empire Bench Birch with Inlays
Located in Kastrup, DK
Elegant Swedish Empire bench in birch with inlays, Sweden, circa 1810. The backs with inlays in the form of Greek female figures. Beautifully executed. The set is reupholstered in ...
Category

Early 19th Century Swedish Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Birch, Mahogany

Important French Empire Early 19th Century Armchair
By Jacob-Desmalter
Located in Worpswede / Bremen, DE
An impressive Napoléonic Empire mahogany armchair, attributed to Jacob-Desmalter (1770-1841). With a pedimented top rail above a rectangular padded back and seat covered in red and g...
Category

Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Bronze

Original Empire Set of a Sofa 2 Armchairs and 1 Table Mahogany with Bronze Figur
Located in Berlin, DE
Original Empire sofa circa 1860-1870 from an Empire room. Massive mahogany cast with Empire caryadites bronze. The armchairs are made of a different fabric than the sofa and should b...
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

Pair of French Empire Mahogany Armchairs Attributed to Jacob Desmalter
By Jacob-Desmalter
Located in Stamford, CT
A very fine pair of French Empire mahogany armchairs attributed to Jacob Desmalter, circa 1805. The shaped backs ending in beautifully...
Category

Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

Pair of French Empire Fauteuils in Mahogany with Bronze Doré Ormolu, circa 1810
Located in Miami, FL
An exquisite pair of Empire armchairs/ fauteuils in fine mahogany with bronze dore´ ormolu mounts decorating the upper crest and lower back splat, with rosettes and palmettes on legs...
Category

Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Bronze

Early 19th Century Pair of Empire / Biedermeier Solid Plum Wood Swan Armchairs
Located in Darmstadt, DE
A pair of Empire / Biedermeier plum wood from circa 1815, newly upholstered with new fabric in classicist style. The armrests, backrest and seat are upholste...
Category

Early 19th Century German Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Wood

Important Empire Early 19th Century Fauteuil by Jean-Joseph Chapuis
Located in Worpswede / Bremen, DE
Despite his long life, very little is known about the general production of menuisier (chairmaker) Jean-Joseph Chapuis (1765-1864) and even less about his use of bent laminates, which must be viewed as the most advanced of its kind until the appearance of Michael Thonet’s work of the 1830s. The profound reverence for the classical world in enlightened circles in early 19th century Europe and the United States often resulted in the archaeological resurrection of the art, architecture, and design of ancient Greece and Rome. No chair employing the innovative technique of bending wood more boldly expresses this allegiance to the past than this armchair painted in le style antique and based on the ancient Roman sella...
Category

Early 19th Century Belgian Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Cane, Bentwood

Quality Pair of Antique Mahogany Carved Side / Desk Chairs
Located in Suffolk, GB
Quality pair of antique mahogany carved side/desk chairs with an elegant tall back with a carved shaped top, an attractive carved open splat to the centre, newly recovered drop in se...
Category

Late 19th Century Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Other

19th Century Danish Canapé Sofa Settee Loveseat in Walnut with Upholstery
Located in Miami, FL
A small and comfortable canapé or settee in figured walnut with ebonized inlaid banding. Legs are turned out of beechwood and stained. Offers upholstered arm rests, back and seat, wi...
Category

Late 19th Century Danish Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Upholstery, Beech, Walnut

Vintage Victorian Style Chair
Located in Pasadena, TX
49” Vintage Victorian style chair. Vintage tapestry style fabric and intricately detailed woodwork.
Category

Early 20th Century American Late Victorian Seating

Materials

Walnut

French Empire Green Armchairs
Located in New York, NY
Pair of French Empire style (19th century) mahogany armchairs with bronze trim and eagle heads with green seat.
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Bronze

French Empire Period Swans' Heads Stool
Located in London, GB
This beautiful antique stool is a classic example of Empire period design: with elegant curved armrests which are designed to look like swans' necks, the seat features skilfully-cast...
Category

Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Bronze, Ormolu

Pair of 19th Century French Empire Armchairs
Located in Palm Springs, CA
A good pair of period 19th century fauteuil with new velvet upholstery, circa 1810-1820, mahogany with carved accents to the arms. They display all the classical elements of the last...
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Velvet, Mahogany

19th Century Vintage Empire Mahogany Salon, Set of 5
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Set of four fauteuils and one large sofa. Mahogany wood. Beautifully restored. Very comfortable and elegant. French work of the beginning of the 19th century, Empire period. Sold as ...
Category

Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

Sublime French Empire Walnut Curvy Sofa with Gilded Swans and Velvet Upholstery
Located in Hopewell, NJ
A super elegant romantic French Empire walnut sofa having sexy curves, ebonized base and details with two gilded swans handles on each end. The upholstery is a fabulous striped velvet in pistachio green and included two glamorous cylindrical pillows...
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Walnut, Giltwood

French Empire Style Mahogany and Pink Upholstered Armchairs
Located in New York, NY
Pair of French Empire style (20th century) mahogany armchairs with gilt feet and classic carved heads detail on arms and pink striped upholstery
Category

20th Century French Empire Seating

Materials

Mahogany, Giltwood

Pair of American Victorian Red Damask Side Chairs
Located in New York, NY
Pair of American Victorian rosewood and filigree carved back side chairs with red damask upholstery. (att: Meeks)
Category

19th Century American Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Rosewood

Antique Ebonized Reading Chair on Castors, Late 19th Century
Located in Uppsala, SE
Diminutive antique reading chair with ebonized legs on castors, late 19th century. Either you sit on it like a normal chair our you can turn arou...
Category

Late 19th Century British Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Brass

Pair of Gianni Versace Armchairs from the Vanitas 1994 Collection
Located in Vancouver, British Columbia
A rare pair of elegant and unique mahogany and gilt armchairs designed by Gianni Versace, part of the 1994 Vanitas Furniture collection. The front legs have columnar shaping and tape...
Category

1990s Italian Empire Seating

Materials

Mahogany

Pair of 19th Century French Empire Mahogany Wing-Back Armchairs
Located in Troy, NY
Exceptional Pair of late Empire Period Chairs, of Comfortable Size and Flowing Movement of Form. The accentuated wings beautifully complementing th...
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Brass

Late 19th Century Franch Empire armchair , in Carved Solid Mahogany
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Late 19th century Franch Empire chair with armrests in carved solid mahogany , wax polished Measure cm: H 92/42 x W 56 x D 50.
Category

Late 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

French Empire Mahogany Side Chair
Located in New York, NY
French Empire style (19th Cent) mahogany sleigh back side chair with bronze griffin legs and trim and red seat
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Bronze

Rocking Chair in Mahogany with Tufted Leather Upholstery
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Victorian mahogany rocking chair with tufted honey-toned leather upholstery. Mounted on a platform base and with fabulous turned wood detailing, the design has a cozy, Neo-Gothic fee...
Category

1880s English Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Leather, Mahogany

Bench Stool Swedish Black 19th Beige Linen Century Sweden
Located in New York, NY
Bench Swedish Black 19th Beige Linen century Sweden. A stool made during the 19th century in Sweden. Painted in our Laserow Black and upholstered in a beige linen.
Category

Early 19th Century Swedish Empire Antique Seating

Empire Style Tall Back Loveseat with Carved Mahogany Base
Located in New York, NY
Empire style tall back loveseat with carved mahogany base and claw feet. Newly upholstered in off-white fabric.
Category

1920s Empire Vintage Seating

Materials

Upholstery, Mahogany

Sofa, Historismus, 1880s
Located in Praha, CZ
- Made in Czechoslovakia - Made of wood, fabric - Original upholstery - Wooden parts has some signs use - Good, original condition.   
Category

1880s Czech Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Fabric, Wood

Early 19th Century, Empire Cherrywood Seating Group, 2 Armchairs and 6 Chairs
Located in Darmstadt, DE
Beautiful unique seating group consisting of 2 armchairs and 6 chairs. The group dates back to the Empire period of the early 19th century, circa 1800-1810. All chairs are made of so...
Category

Early 19th Century German Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Upholstery, Cherry

Empire Stool with Giltwood Lion Heads and Paw Feet, Sweden, Circa 1810
Located in New York, NY
Fantastic Swedish Empire stool with giltwood lion heads and paw feet, Sweden, circa 1810. Featured in our gallery windows (photographs attached) p...
Category

Early 19th Century Swedish Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Giltwood

The Last King's Chair
Located in Greenwich, CT
Rare and important carved mahogany Empire Period armchair attributed to Jacob Desmalter, France circa 1800, of neoclassical form inspired by the design of Percier et Fontaine, architects to the Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte, the armrests beautifully carved with leopards heads and torso, the front legs ending in carved paw feet. Attributed to Jacob Desmalter. France, circa 1800. Provenance: The front under railing stencilled “Raincy” period paper labels hand written: Mrs Duque Orlean, Grand Salon, Palais Royal. This chair was part of a large salon suite (this one is number belonging to King Louis Philippe - Duke of Orléans - the last king of France. An almost identical model was known to be part of the collection of Molly de Balkany who had an important collection of Empire furniture. Sister of Robert De Balkany...
Category

Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

19th Century French Empire Mahogany and Parcel Gilt
Located in Dallas, TX
19th century French Empire and parcel gilt bergère. Gilt swan arms and pawed feet.
Category

Late 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

19th Century French Empire Mahogany Brown Wood Fauteuils or Armchairs Red, Pair
Located in London, GB
A pair of 19th century Empire mahogany fauteuils, with unusual back splats carved with a roundel of laurel leaves to the centre, layered on top of a Greek lyre form, the seats uphols...
Category

Mid-19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Leather, Mahogany

Matched Pair of French Empire Armchairs, 19th Century
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A good quality near pair of French Mahogany Empire influenced armchairs. Each being upholstered in a classical damask patterned burgundy fabric, polished back rail, Dolphins carved t...
Category

Late 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

Pair of Early 19th Century Mahogany Bergères Armchairs
Located in London, by appointment only
A pair of Austrian Empire period large scale mahogany bergères, the square chamfered backs are enriched with bold pierced flutes and the arms terminate in column supports with brass ...
Category

19th Century Austrian Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Mahogany

Mid-19th Century H.C. Andersen Rocking Chair in Polished Cast Iron
Located in Kastrup, DK
H.C. Andersen rocking chair in polished cast iron, Denmark, 1850-1870. Reupholstered with fabric from Ralph Lauren. (Called H.C. Andersen rocking chair, because he is depicted in one).
Category

Mid-19th Century Danish Late Victorian Antique Seating

Materials

Metal

French Empire Gold Bergère Armchairs
Located in New York, NY
Pair of French Empire style (19th century) mahogany swan design Bergère armchairs with bronze trim, griffin legs, and gold upholstery.
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Bronze

French Empire Black Leather Swivel Chair
Located in New York, NY
19th Century French Empire style ormolu mounted mahogany open swivel base arm chair with black leather seat and back.
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Materials

Ormolu

Pair of Consulat Ebony-Inlaid Birchwood Armchairs Stamped Jacob Frères
Located in Kittery Point, ME
The curved pierced back with a palmette-inlaid shaped splat terminating in dolphin supports raised on an upholstered seat, on front carved joined hairy animal legs (pieds de bîches) and hoof feet and back sabre legs; stamped: JACOB FRERES RUE MESLEE under the front rail. For a similar dolphin support, see Madeleine Jarry and Pierre Devinois, Le Siège Français, pp. 267 and 271 illustration 264 for an armchair at the Musée Marmottan stamped G. Jacob and executed in 1792. Provenance: Millicent Rogers her son, Arturo Peralta Ramos II Jacob Frères was the stamp used by brothers Georges II (1768-1803) and Francois-Honore Jacob (1770-1841) from 1796 to 1803. They were sons of Georges Jacob (1739-1814), arguably the best-known chair maker who worked for aristocracy and royalty during the reign of Louis XVI. The Jacob Frères firm's most famous client was Josephine, wife of Napoleon Bonaparte. She would have most likely seen the work of their father during the revolution in a progressive aristocrat's house. She used them to decorate various Imperial residences, such as the Tuileries palace, and remained a loyal customer, using them almost exclusively, until her death. When Georges II (the elder brother) died in 1803, Georges came out of retirement to help the remaining son, Francois-Honoré (who changed his named to Jacob Desmalter) from a new partnership called Jacob Desmalter Et Cie. (stamped Jacob D. R. Meslée, on two lines), which continued to be an influential supplier for the Imperial period and is credited with helping to define the Empire style as it is known today. Millicent Rogers, born Mary Millicent Abigail Rogers, was a Standard Oil heiress, but she wasn’t a poor little rich girl...
Category

Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Seating

Unique Chairs, Sofas and Other Seating for Sale on 1stDibs

With entire areas of our homes reserved for “sitting rooms,” the value of quality antique and vintage seating cannot be overstated.

Fortunately, the design of side chairs, armchairs and other lounge furniture — since what were, quite literally, the early perches of our ancestors — has evolved considerably.

Among the earliest standard seating furniture were stools. Egyptian stools, for example, designed for one person with no seat back, were x-shaped and typically folded to be tucked away. These rudimentary chairs informed the design of Greek and Roman stools, all of which were a long way from Sori Yanagi's Butterfly stool or Alvar Aalto's Stool 60. In the 18th century and earlier, seats with backs and armrests were largely reserved for high nobility.

The seating of today is more inclusive but the style and placement of chairs can still make a statement. Antique desk chairs and armchairs designed in the style of Louis XV, which eventually included painted furniture and were often made of rare woods, feature prominently curved legs as well as Chinese themes and varied ornaments. Much like the thrones of fairy tales and the regency, elegant lounges crafted in the Louis XV style convey wealth and prestige. In the kitchen, the dining chair placed at the head of the table is typically reserved for the head of the household or a revered guest.

Of course, with luxurious vintage or antique furnishings, every chair can seem like the best seat in the house. Whether your preference is stretching out on a plush sofa, such as the Serpentine, designed by Vladimir Kagan, or cozying up in a vintage wingback chair, there is likely to be a comfy classic or contemporary gem for you on 1stDibs.

With respect to the latest obsessions in design, cane seating has been cropping up everywhere, from sleek armchairs to lounge chairs, while bouclé fabric, a staple of modern furniture design, can be seen in mid-century modern, Scandinavian modern and Hollywood Regency furniture styles.

Admirers of the sophisticated craftsmanship and dark woods frequently associated with mid-century modern seating can find timeless furnishings in our expansive collection of lounge chairs, dining chairs and other items — whether they’re vintage editions or alluring official reproductions of iconic designs from the likes of Hans Wegner or from Charles and Ray Eames. Shop our inventory of Egg chairs, designed in 1958 by Arne Jacobsen, the Florence Knoll lounge chair and more.

No matter your style, the collection of unique chairs, sofas and other seating on 1stDibs is surely worthy of a standing ovation.

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