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.
Pair of Rare Teak Klismos Chairs by Ashley Hicks Jantar Mantar Collection 1999
By Ashley Hicks
Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL
Pair of Rare Teak Klismos Chairs by Ashley Hicks Jantar Mantar Collection 1999. From UK-based Ashley Hicks premier collection of furniture, the Jantar Mantar Klismos side chairs were...
Leather, Teak
$4,650 / set
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...
Wood
Rare Pair of Thonet Chairs Model 110
By Gebrüder Thonet Vienna GmbH
Located in Vienna, AT
Simple and elegant beech/plywood construction from the 1890s. Original condition Singed on the frame. Two pieces available. Price for both
Beech, Plywood
$3,995 / set
H 33 in W 20.75 in D 22 in
Pair of Regency Styled Side or Accent Chairs with Reclining Nude & Swan Panels
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
This pair of antique chairs are unsigned, but presumed to have originated from the United States and date to approximately 1920 and done in a Regency, or Hollywood Regency style. The...
Cane, Pine
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...
Upholstery
$1,980 / set
H 30.5 in W 20.5 in D 21 in
Pair of Herman Miller Eames DCM Molded Plywood Side Chairs 1985-1999 (Signed)
By Herman Miller, Charles and Ray Eames
Located in Brooklyn, NY
An iconic pair of Herman Miller Eames DCM molded plywood side chairs 1985-1999 (Signed). These chair’s beautiful design makes them incredibly recognizable and sought after. Very stur...
Metal
$21,500 / set
H 35.44 in W 29.93 in D 22.84 in
Early Matching Pair, T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings Klismos Chairs for Saridis of Athens
By Saridis, T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings
Located in Dronten, NL
Exceptional pair of early Klismos chairs by T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings for Saridis of Athens, crafted in dark-stained walnut and retaining their original character and authenticity throu...
Leather, Walnut
Pair of Polished Brass Klismos Chairs with Snake Design
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Pair of modern polished brass Klismos chairs with curved back, woven leather strapping and snake design on the brass work. Made in USA, 21st Centur...
Brass
Hollywood Regency Vintage Italian Gilt Iron Sculptural Chair
By S. Salvadori
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
1960s vintage Italian Hollywood Regency gilt iron vanity chair. Petite Italian vanity side chair in gold gilt wrought iron, light weight and perfectl...
Iron
Austrian Biedermeier Klismos Chair '1830'
Located in Kenilworth, IL
Biedermeier Klismos side chair of European beechwood and mahogany veneers. The seat is upholstered in Italian oil tanned leather with brass round head tacks. The front legs are turne...
Brass
$7,800 / set
H 33 in W 18 in D 19 in
Hollywood Regency Brass Neoclassical Side Chairs in Leopard Velvet & Leather
Located in Saint Louis, MO
An air of sophisticated elegance oozes from this pair of brass Hollywood Regency chairs. This pair - hailing from the 1950s - is in incredible condition with every surface fully professionally restored. You'll receive these chairs just as the original owner did. Polished brass that glows. New comfy cushions freshly upholstered in sexy leopard velvet finished with black leather piping. Brass frames that curve from top to bottom beginning with a curved solid back bar. Cross pattern back detail converges on a brass 3 ring spindle embraced by curved side bars. Lovely complimenting splayed legs seem to curtsy. These chairs deliver on looks and feels. Stunning chairs that immediately attract attention. Soft leopard velvet sensual to the touch. Billy Haines is designer royalty. See why? Want to see more beautiful things? Scroll down below and click "View All From Seller" or favorite our shop to get your 1stDibs on our new inventory. Photographed with and also currently available in our shop- Tommi Parzinger Bar Cabinet Laquered in White Chocolate with Polished Iconic...
Brass
Pair of 19th Century Klismos Chairs
Located in New York, NY
A pair 19th century Danish Klismos chairs. Collected in Copenhagen elegant pair of late 19th century Danish Klismos Chairs. Ebonized hardwood wi...
Hardwood
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...
Wood
Austrian Biedermeier klismos chair, c. 1820
Located in Kenilworth, IL
Klismos side chair with leather upholstered seat, brass tack trim, deep yoke back, and turned front legs. Austria, circa 1820.
Brass
Sold
H 35.125 in W 23.25 in D 20 in
Klismos Athens Chair, Glenn of California, Designed by Stewart MacDougall
By Kipp Stewart & Stewart MacDougall
Located in Doraville, GA
A beautiful klismos "Athens" chair designed by Stewart MacDougall for Glenn Of California. The chair was designed probably in the 1950's to 1960's. The chair appears to be solid waln...
Fabric, Walnut
Antique Classical Empire Figural Mahogany & Ormolu Armchair, c1830
Located in Big Flats, NY
An antique Classical Empire arm chair offers mahogany construction with barrel t-back having foliate cast ormolu central mount with flanking cherubs over upholstered seat and scroll ...
Ormolu
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...
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...
Upholstery, Walnut