Classical Greek Chairs
CLASSICAL GREEK STYLE
There is rare surviving furniture from ancient Greece, yet this classical style has informed design for centuries. Interiors of houses in antiquity were minimal, with much of a room’s color coming from frescoes on the walls and mosaics on the floors. Classical Greek furniture was sparing but finely crafted and influenced by Egyptian furniture design through Mediterranean trade.
Furnishings of the period were usually made from local wood like cypress, cedar, oak and willow from ancient Greece’s plentiful forests, although some pieces were carved from marble, such as a 300–200 B.C. throne with lion legs and a curved back now at the Getty Villa. Comfort and clean lines characterized designs during the Classical era, the symmetry and thoughtful proportions reflecting the architecture of Greek temples.
Some pieces of ancient Greek furniture were simple, rectangular platforms like the klinē, a multipurpose ancestor of today’s couches or daybeds that held cushions stuffed with wool, dry grass or down. These structures were used for both sleeping and dining, which wealthy Greeks did while reclining. At night, oil lamps illuminated rooms that frequently surrounded a garden courtyard.
Most of what scholars have learned about Greek furniture design owes to its representations in art like vases and stelae. The portable diphros stool, with its backless design and four turned legs, was one of the more common types of seating in daily Greek life — it appears as such for the gods on the Parthenon frieze. Stools without backs have been found in early Roman tombs, while benches were also common Greek seating furniture created for use in theaters. In houses of the Hellenistic period, benches seemingly functioned as tables, too.
Some designs evolved through adaptations by the Romans, including the klismos chair. After prominent archaeological excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum, the klismos chair — with its four saber legs and the elegant curves that define its back — was a source of inspiration for aesthetics in eras ranging from 18th-century neoclassicism to 20th-century Art Deco.
Find a collection of Classical Greek decorative objects, wall decorations and building and garden elements on 1stDibs.
to
3
1
2
2
Height
to
Width
to
Depth
to
3
3
2
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
1
7,848
5,822
1,150
643
304
218
198
195
174
173
157
156
140
124
119
86
80
75
2
2
2
1
1
2
1
1
1
1
2
2
2
2
4
2
3
1
Style: Classical Greek
Lucite Klismos Chair in Malachite Print Fabric
Located in North Hollywood, CA
Lucite Klismos chair upholstered in malachite print fabric in the style of Charles Hollis Jones.
It is made in 1990’s by Los Angeles based company Shahrooz. Total three chairs availa...
Category
1930s American Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Lucite
Contemporary Iron Klismos Chair
Located in New Orleans, LA
The classic iron klismos chair from the Tara Shaw Maison collection is adorned with palm frond motifs and a delicate bronze-colored knot. This chair makes a statement with a variety ...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Iron
Pair of Italian Hollywood Regency Klismos Chairs
Located in Houston, TX
Stunning pair of Italian Hollywood Regency klismos style chairs. These chic high style Italian side chairs are painted a soft gray/green with gilt accents and have great splayed legs or saber legs. Our vintage Klismos chairs...
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Wood
Customizable Black Woven Leather Saber Legs Klismos Chairs Other Colors Possible
Located in IT
Klismos customizable dining chairs with saber legs, black lacquered wood and black woven leather seats. Available in other colors and upholstery.
Klismos are walnut wood chairs wi...
Category
2010s Italian Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Leather, Walnut
Related Items
Pair Of Klismos Chairs
Located in Tarrytown, NY
Pair of 1990s Klismos chairs. Veneer chipped on both chairs. Needs reupholstering.
Category
1990s Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Wood
Eames Time Life Lobby Lounge Chair in Black Leather for Herman Miller, 1980s USA
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Classic Eames Time Life Lobby Chair in black leather for Herman Miller. Black leather is in good condition with wear as shown. Extremely comfortable and worn in. Chair swivels. Heigh...
Category
1980s North American Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Aluminum
H 33 in W 28.75 in D 27 in
Eames Time Life Chair in Black Leather for Herman Miller, 1980s USA
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Classic Eames Time Life swivel chair in black leather for Herman Miller. Original black leather with wear as shown. Extremely comfortable and worn in. Chair swivels. Chair reclines. ...
Category
1980s American Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Aluminum
Pair of Italian Mid-Century Modern Side Chairs
Located in Buchanan, NY
A sophisticated pair of 1950s Italian sidechairs in green leather with wicker backs and brass detailing. Add some classic mid-century modern elegance to your home with this gorgeous pair of 1950s Italian side chairs...
Category
1950s Italian Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Upholstery
Hollywood Regency Vintage Italian Gilt Iron Sculptural Chair
By S. Salvadori
Located in North Hollywood, CA
1960s vintage Italian Hollywood Regency gilt iron vanity chair.
Petite Italian vanity side chair in gold gilt wrought iron, light weight and perfectl...
Category
Mid-20th Century Italian Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Iron
Renoved Mid Century Italian Chair by Carlo Ratti with Black Suede Leather
By Carlo Ratti
Located in Rome, IT
Mid century italian chair by Carlo Ratti
beech wood, oak wood, black suede leather , steel , brass .
We have carried out a complete restoration along with some light restying on thi...
Category
1950s Italian Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Iron
H 35.04 in W 14.97 in D 18.9 in
Six Mahogany Klismos Dining Chair with COM Upholstery
Located in New York, NY
New production. 6 chairs in this offer. Additional can be made to order. Designed and handmade in NYC. Fabric in image is not included and they can upholstered at no charge in COM (C...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary American Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Wood
Black Kilta Chair by Olli Mannermaa
Located in Dronten, NL
This elegant Kilta chair was designed by Finland designer Olli Mannermaa for Martela.
The Kilta chair is a Finnish design Classic. Kilta’s timeless design and very comfortable seati...
Category
1960s Finnish Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Steel
Pair of Pierre Jeanneret Floating Back V-Leg Office Chairs, 1950s Chandigarh
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Gorgeous pair of Pierre Jeanneret office chairs designed in the 1950s. These chairs have a floating back and V-leg frame. Pictur...
Category
1950s Indian Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Cane, Teak
H 32 in W 20.25 in D 21 in
Fabricius Kastholm Leather 'Bird' Chairs
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Beautiful modern leather and aluminum office chairs in original black leather. Higher back version. Designed in the 60s by Jørgen Kastholm & Preben Fabricius for Alfred Kill's KILL I...
Category
1960s German Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Aluminum
Klismos black chair
By Pescetta
Located in IT
Classic and elegant Klismos customizable dining chairs with saber legs, black lacquered wood and leather seats. Available in other colors and upholstery. Italian artisanal production...
Category
2010s Italian Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Leather, Wood
Pair of Regency Ebonized Klismos Side Chairs
Located in Essex, MA
Each with a curved wide seat rail with grape leaves and grapes central decoration, upholstered seat, raised on exaggerated saber legs. Provenance; Estate of William Hodgins, Interior...
Category
1810s English Antique Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Wood
Previously Available Items
Boston Classical Mahogany Side Chair
Located in Essex, MA
Reupholstered rounded back and straight seat raised on turned legs and casters.
Category
1830s American Antique Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Mahogany
Contemporary Klismos Chair in Stainless Steel and Fine Leather Seat Mesh
Located in San Francisco, CA
We know about klismos chairs thanks to ancient Greek art, but how did this forgotten furniture item actually work its way back into our homes? That story begins in 1748 CE. Surveyors in southern Italy accidentally unearthed parts of an ancient Roman city, buried in layers of volcanic ash. The discovery of Pompeii and Herculaneum sparked a cultural obsession with all things Greek and Roman. In art, neoclassical sculpture flourished. In architecture, Greek and Roman Revival styles spread through major cities. After 1776, even the brand new United States jumped eagerly on the neoclassical bandwagon, seeing this as a way to create an ideological parallel between Roman and American republics.
So, what exactly defines the klismos chair...
Category
Early 2000s American Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Stainless Steel
Italian Brass Chair with Greek Key Design
Located in St.Petersburg, FL
An unusual Italian brass chair with Greek key design, circa 1960s.
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Brass
T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings Walnut Klismos Chair, circa 1965
Located in New York, NY
T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings (1905-1976) A classical klismos style Greek walnut side chair with warm brown finish and caramel-colored leather woven seat.
Executed by Saridis, Athens
Signed with metal label under seat
American, circa 1965
This chair model is notably documented on the cover of "Furniture of Classical Greece," written by Robsjohn-Gibbings and Carlton W. Pullin in 1963.
We love what Pilar Viladas said about this iconic design in the New York Times in 2010: "T. H. Robsjohn-Gibbings’s klismos chair looks ancient and modern at the same time, because it is. Based on ancient Greek models, which had been widely copied in the 18th and 19th centuries, Robsjohn-Gibbings’s version made the klismos shape famous again in the 20th century. Obsessed with its elegant lines, he designed versions of the chair throughout his career, but the most recent examples have been made by Saridis in Athens since the early 1960s, when the designer met the company’s owners and settled in the Greek capital. It's simple but opulent curves hint at sleek penthouses with butlers who serve cocktails on the terrace at sunset. (Indeed, Robsjohn-Gibbings’s Saridis...
Category
1960s Greek Vintage Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Leather, Wood
Pair of Klismos Style Side Chairs
Located in Chicago, IL
A modern take on the Greek classic, these chairs feature U-shaped barrel-like backs and deep bucket seats. Raised on square tapered legs—the front straight, while the back are splaye...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Hungarian Classical Greek Chairs
Materials
Upholstery, Walnut
Classical Greek chairs for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a broad range of unique Classical Greek chairs for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage chairs created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include seating and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with animal skin, leather and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Classical Greek chairs made in a specific country, there are Europe, Italy, and North America pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original chairs, popular names associated with this style include and Tara Shaw Maison. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for chairs differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $1,758 and tops out at $4,920 while the average work can sell for $3,900.