Napoleon III Sofas
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.
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Bronze
Late 20th Century American Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet, Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery, Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Brass
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Silk, Giltwood
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Brass, Steel, Iron
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric, Wood
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Brocade, Beech
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric, Oak
1890s European Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery, Oak
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Wool
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet, Beech
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery, Walnut
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery
1960s French Vintage Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery, Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Cotton, Wood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Wood
1950s French Vintage Napoleon III Sofas
Wood, Satin
1890s Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric, Wood
Early 2000s Italian Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet, Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Silk, Giltwood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet, Wood
1960s Dutch Vintage Napoleon III Sofas
Chrome
19th Century English Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Brass
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Brocade, Beech
21st Century and Contemporary Portuguese Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet, Wood, Silk, Trimming
Mid-20th Century Danish Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet
1950s Italian Vintage Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet, Macassar
Mid-20th Century Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric
18th Century English Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Beech
2010s American Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet, Polyester, Poplar, Walnut
1890s Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric, Wood
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery, Wood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Brass
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Linen, Wood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Upholstery, Walnut
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric, Bouclé, Upholstery
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Velvet
1860s Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Wood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Sofas
Fabric