Desks
1970s American Vintage Desks
Brass
1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks
Wood, Walnut
1820s English Antique Desks
Brass
Mid-20th Century French Hollywood Regency Desks
Leather, Wood
Early 19th Century German Biedermeier Antique Desks
Birch, Burl
Early 1900s German Art Nouveau Antique Desks
Pine
2010s American Mid-Century Modern Desks
Steel
Late 19th Century French Empire Antique Desks
Ormolu, Bronze
Early 18th Century Antique Desks
Brass
1920s European Louis XVI Vintage Desks
Marble, Bronze
Early 18th Century Chinese Chinese Export Antique Desks
Lacquer
19th Century English Antique Desks
Walnut
Late 18th Century Scandinavian Rococo Antique Desks
Walnut, Giltwood
1870s English Antique Desks
Brass
Early 19th Century Italian Empire Antique Desks
Mahogany
1780s German Louis XVI Antique Desks
Cherry
1930s English Bauhaus Vintage Desks
Wood
21st Century and Contemporary American Desks
Oak, Parchment Paper
19th Century Czech Biedermeier Antique Desks
Walnut
1950s French Vintage Desks
Steel
Early 19th Century English Regency Antique Desks
Mahogany
Late 19th Century French Antique Desks
Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary British Georgian Desks
Leather, Mahogany
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Desks
Walnut
1950s Dutch Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks
Metal
20th Century Victorian Desks
Walnut, Burl
1860s English Antique Desks
Leather, Boxwood, Walnut
Mid-20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Desks
Teak
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Desks
Stainless Steel
19th Century French Antique Desks
Wood
1970s Italian Rococo Vintage Desks
Leather, Wood
Early 19th Century English Georgian Antique Desks
Mahogany
1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks
Laminate, Beech
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks
Steel
Late 19th Century French Antique Desks
Wood
19th Century American Chippendale Antique Desks
Walnut, Pine
1950s European Vintage Desks
Wood, Paper
1820s American Campaign Antique Desks
1970s Belgian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks
Wood
20th Century European Aesthetic Movement Desks
Ash
1830s English William IV Antique Desks
Mahogany
21st Century and Contemporary American Modern Desks
Faux Leather, Ash
Early 20th Century French Art Deco Desks
Mahogany
18th Century and Earlier French Louis XV Antique Desks
Walnut
21st Century and Contemporary American Directoire Desks
Brass
16th Century Italian Renaissance Antique Desks
Walnut
1980s English Post-Modern Vintage Desks
Mahogany, Giltwood
1960s Argentine Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks
Wood
1890s English Sheraton Antique Desks
Satinwood
Late 19th Century Georgian Antique Desks
Mahogany
1820s American Sheraton Antique Desks
1890s English Antique Desks
Brass
Late 18th Century Spanish Colonial Antique Desks
Maple, Walnut
1780s English George III Antique Desks
Walnut
20th Century English Modern Desks
Shagreen
Early 18th Century English William and Mary Antique Desks
Walnut, Burl
Late 19th Century European Baroque Revival Antique Desks
Oak
Mid-20th Century American Hollywood Regency Desks
Brass, Aluminum
Vintage and Antique Desks for Sale — Shop Handcrafted Mid-Century Modern Desks, Art Deco Desks and Other Desks and Tables on 1stDibs
There’s no reason that the corner of your home you’ve dedicated to work shouldn’t also reflect your personality and sense of style. A collection of unique vintage and antique desks can be found on 1stDibs today.
The right desk can be a good fit for your space and help keep you organized when you need it most. For many, the word “desk” can have a negative connotation. Derived from the Latin desca, meaning “table to write on,” the word can understandably evoke memories of stuffy classrooms or monotonous workdays.
As working from home has become more widespread for part of the workforce, many professionals who work remotely park themselves at the dining-room table or at the kitchen countertop to do so. If you’ve got the space, it's healthy to set aside an area in your home designated for work. A good desk can keep you on track and keep your newly minted home office free of clutter and distractions.
Within your own walls, an office area can be both personal and productive, decorated exactly to your taste or just an unobtrusive addition that aligns with the energy of the space as is. When shopping for a desk, keep height, space and specs in mind. It’s helpful to know if you’ll need the desk to offer storage, such as drawers or a hutch, or if it should fit alongside your bedroom wall as cleanly as possible.
An antique writing desk, for example, will offer a spacious, streamlined work experience with a desktop that affords real estate for your notebooks, pens, laptop and research materials. Secretary desks reveal small inner storage compartments — pigeonholes, cubbies, recesses or drawers — when their hinged leaves are folded out.
Maybe you'd prefer a vintage mid-century modern desk that seamlessly incorporates drawers for storage.
Nebraska-born designer Don S. Shoemaker became inspired by Mexico’s tropical woods, such as cocobolo, a Mexican rosewood, and he decided to work with the material in the postwar years to create desks and other furnishings. Elsewhere, made according to the same high standards as the company’s chairs, celebrated mid-century manufacturer Herman Miller produced desks over the years in a number of versions, created by designers like George Nelson, Gilbert Rohde and Bruce Burdick.
Whether you want a dramatic rolltop-style furnishing akin to the 18th-century secretary commissioned by Louis XVI or a contemporary piece made of everything from linoleum to fallen trees, a new desk and clever arrangement of desktop accessories can brighten the workday in any home.
For every passion project, year-end report or spontaneous million-dollar app idea, find the desk you need on 1stDibs.
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