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Secretaires For Sale
MCM Jack Van Der Molen Secretary Desk and Dresser for Vanleigh
Located in Medina, OH
MCM Jack Van Der Molen Secretary Desk and Dresser for Vanleigh. The first drawer pulls out as a writing desk, the second drawer is also narrow but is a regular drawer. There are also...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Secretaires
Materials
Oak
Louis Seize Secretary around 1800 Nutwood Veneer on Oak
Located in Münster, DE
Cylinder bureau, Westphalia circa 1800, walnut and other fine woods veneered on oak, marquetry work, partly fire shaded, fluting and meander frieze, on the cylinder closure depiction...
Category
Early 1800s German Louis XVI Antique Secretaires
Materials
Wood, Nutwood, Oak
Italian Marquetry Marble Top Commode Secretary Desk
Located in Hopewell, NJ
Finely detailed with exquisite marquetry, this Italian commode secretary features a beautiful gray green marble top and drop front desk behind a faux drawer, revealing a burlwood int...
Category
20th Century Italian Secretaires
Materials
Leather, Mahogany, Satinwood, Burl
Frank Brangwyn. A rare desk originally designed for the 1931 Pollard exhibition
By Frank Brangwyn, E. Pollard & Co
Located in London, GB
Frank Brangwyn. E Pollard and Co.
A rare desk originally designed for the 1931 Pollard Exhibition where it can be seen in a room setting in the original photographs from 1931. See ...
Category
1930s English Art Deco Vintage Secretaires
Materials
Sycamore
21st Century Brocart Jewel Cabinet with Gold Leaf Laser Engraved Lace Decoration
Located in Cantù, Lombardia
The jewel cabinet of the Brocart line presents a base with hand-carved legs and antique gold leaf finishing in pure classic style, combined with an upper...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Louis XVI Secretaires
Materials
Wood
Louis XVI Style Mahogany Secretaire Abattant
Located in San Francisco, CA
Early-mid 19th century Louis XVI style mahogany secretaire abattant
The top having a drawer above the drop front with felt writing surface, multiple compartments/drawers. Bottom hal...
Category
Mid-19th Century European Louis XIII Antique Secretaires
Materials
Brass
Art Deco Secretary Cabinet in Black Lacquer with Mirrored Interior, France 1930s
Located in Ulm, DE
This striking Art Deco secretary cabinet — crafted in France during the 1930s — is a quintessential example of the era’s refined glamour and design ingenuity. Finished in a luxurious...
Category
1930s French Art Deco Vintage Secretaires
Materials
Lacquer, Mirror, Beech
20th Century Louis XVI Style Secretaire after Charles Topino
By Charles Topino
Located in Berlin, DE
Light fruit and tropical woods on spruce marquetry, with rich marquetry.
(L-Gm-2).
Category
20th Century Louis XVI Secretaires
Materials
Wood, Fruitwood
Verni Martin secrétaire abattant , circa 1880
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A very good quality late 19th Century French Louis XVI style secretaries abbattant, having bombe shaped sides, gilded rococo style scrolling ormolu mounts. Wonderful hand painted Ver...
Category
Late 19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Secretaires
Materials
Mahogany
English Chippendale Mahogany Blind Door Secretary With Bookcase, Circa 1775
Located in Charleston, SC
English Chippendale mahogany blind door secretary with bookcase. Upper case has a carved cornice fret work with flanking blind doors concealing i...
Category
1770s English Chippendale Antique Secretaires
Materials
Brass
20th Century French Secretary in Louis Seize Style
Located in Berlin, DE
Palisander mirror veneer on solid softwood. Rectangular body on pointed legs. In the front between four drawers straight flap. Behind it rich office layout. The sides and the front a...
Category
20th Century French Secretaires
Materials
Wood
Mid-Century Danish Rosewood Secretaire: A Treasure Trove of Modern Design
Located in Alcoy, Alicante
Unveil the elegance and functionality of mid-century Danish design with this exceptional rosewood secretaire, circa 1960s. This versatile piece, meticulously crafted from rich rosewo...
Category
Mid-20th Century Danish Mid-Century Modern Secretaires
Materials
Wood
Fine 19th Century Mahogany French Secretaire Abbatant
By Maison Lemarchand and Lemoine
Located in Bedfordshire, GB
An Exceptional, Exhibition Quality, 19th Century French Napoleon III Period Mahogany And Brass Secretaire Abbatant, Having Original Veined Marble Top With Attractive Pierced Brass Ga...
Category
Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Secretaires
Materials
Mahogany
Chinese Export Secretaire Chest
Located in Gloucestershire, GB
Tall Chinese secretaire chest, similar to a campaign chest.
With a wonderful drop front, this chest would have been made for Chinese export and still retains its original brass dr...
Category
19th Century English Country Antique Secretaires
Materials
Wood
19th Century French Standing Secrétaire / Dry Bar with Tambour Doors, Marble Top
Located in Madrid, ES
A 19th century, French secrétaire with beautiful feathered woodwork, eucalyptus fillet inlay with Louis XVI style detailing. The wood grain veneer is artfully arranged in geometric p...
Category
19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Secretaires
Materials
Marble
19th Century Ebony and Thuya Wood Bonheur Du Jour
Located in Chelmsford, Essex
For sale is a 19th century amboyna and ebony cabinet, with three quarter balustrade gallery, above two panelled doors set with Paris porcelain portrait ...
Category
Mid-19th Century Victorian Antique Secretaires
Materials
Amboyna
20th Century Walnut Wood with Antiqued Mirrors Italian Trumeau Desk Cabinet 1950s
Located in Vicoforte, Piedmont
Venetian trumeau from the mid-20th century. Double body furniture carved and veneered in walnut, olive, burl and beech woods of beautiful lines and pleasant decor. Moved and rounded ...
Category
1950s Italian Vintage Secretaires
Materials
Mirror, Wood
Spectacular masterspiece ladies writing secretary desk Napoleon III, 1860 France
Located in Wien, AT
A masterpiece of French craftsmanship - a Napoleon III era ladies writing secretary desk, circa 1860.
The piece of furniture has a slender, high structure, with a richly decorated f...
Category
1860s French Antique Secretaires
Materials
Marble, Brass, Bronze
An antique English Secretaire
Located in Schellebelle, BE
Antique English Secretary Bureau in Burr Walnut Wood,
late 18 th Century,
the desk has a desirable aged and warm patine, the desk is in a per...
Category
1790s British Antique Secretaires
Materials
Walnut
Fine Italian 18th Century Ormolu-Mounted Parquetry Secretaire a Abattant
Located in Rome, IT
Very fine Italian 18' century ormolu-mounted Parquetry Secretaire a Abattant with a dark Grey marble top.
Measures: cm. 170 x 105 x 46.
Category
18th Century Italian Louis XVI Antique Secretaires
Materials
Wood
Special 19th Century Gilt Bronze Mounted Inlaid Parquetry Secretaire a Abattant
By Jean-Henri Riesener
Located in Long Island City, NY
A Special Late 19th Century Gilt Bronze Mounted Inlaid Parquetry Secretaire a Abattant
The shaped marble top above a long center frieze drawer with a large central bronze plaque of putti at play, the beautiful parquetry drop-down door centered with an elliptical gilt bronze panel depicting ”A Sacrifice to Love”, a classically dressed woman presenting an infant to Cupid, who stands on a pedestal, the plaque has ribbon tied flowers, the inside centered with a mirror surrounded by drawers and pigeonholes, the fall-front itself provides a black leather writing surface, the bottom doors opening to two more drawers and a shelf, the sides decorated with similar parquetry designs.
This piece is a copy of the 18th century Secretaire by Jean-Henri Riesener which is presently in the Wallace Collection...
Category
Late 19th Century French Belle Époque Antique Secretaires
Materials
Marble, Bronze, Ormolu
Pair 19th Century Bonheur Du Jours
Located in Brighton, Sussex
Rare pair of 19th Century French Kingwood and Tulip wood veneered Bonheur du jours, each with pierced three quarter brass galleries, gilded ormolu mounts, three drawers either side o...
Category
19th Century Japanese Louis XVI Antique Secretaires
Materials
Mahogany, Porcelain
Guillerme et Chambron, Secretaire in Blackened Oak, circa 1970
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Guillerme et Chambron, Secretaire in blackened oak, Edition Votre Maison, circa 1970.
Category
1970s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Secretaires
Materials
Oak
Walnut Carved Secretaire Desk from H. Dufin, France, 19th Century
By Honoré Dufin
Located in Casteren, Noord-Brabant
Beautiful fine carved secretary desk.
The desk was made by the famous French cabinet maker Honoré Dufin. The secretary is signed on both sides by...
Category
1870s French Renaissance Revival Antique Secretaires
Materials
Walnut
18th Century Satin Mahogany and Rosewood Secretary
Located in Savannah, GA
This is a secretary / bureau/ desk made in England, circa 1780. The top and the fall have a rosewood banding with a string inlay of satinwood and Satin Mahogany in the interior of th...
Category
1780s English George III Antique Secretaires
Materials
Satinwood
Antique French Napoleon III Inlaid Ormolu Marble Top Secretaire Desk Chest 1860
Located in Portland, OR
An exceptional French antique Napoleon III inlaid ebonized & ormolu mounted marble top secretaire chest, circa 1860.
This superb antique French secretaire abattant has a black & white veined marble top, with a reverse breakfront gilded bronze frieze below, the front of the secretaire is very finely inlaid with Mother-of-Pearl & gilt bronze 'rope twist' decoration. The chest has eight drawer fronts with gilded cast bronze garland decorated lock escutcheons, three of the drawers are dummy & form the fall front for the pull down secretary, which has the original blue velvet writing surface and engraved lock-plate. The interior is made of the finest flame grained satinwood and has two drawers with lozenge shaped inlay, the top of the chest with a pair of very finely cast gilt bronze caryatid brackets, the base with a corresponding pair of gilt bronze acanthus shaped brackets. The secretaire is raised on turned bun feet with gilt bronze mounts and a shaped skirt also with a gilt bronze mount, the sides of the chest with inlaid bronze stringing.
Condition is excellent, this exceptional French antique secretary chest...
Category
Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Secretaires
Materials
Marble, Bronze, Ormolu
Green Lacquered Large French Secrétaire, Designed for a Durable Teleworking
By Éric Gizard
Located in Landivy, FR
This large secretary desk is mounted in our French workshops and delivered fully assembled.
The overall dimensions of the box itself are
Widt...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Scandinavian Modern Secretaires
Materials
Wood, Ash, Lacquer
Louis XVI Cylinder Secretary
Located in Brussels, BE
Louis XVI cylinder secretary.
Category
Mid-18th Century French Antique Secretaires
Materials
Wood
Biedermeier Secretaire
Located in Pompano Beach, FL
Biedermeier secretaire in walnut, root wood and ebony with fall-front writing surface; interior drawers and secret compartments.
Category
19th Century Austrian Antique Secretaires
Materials
Ebony, Walnut
18th Century Italian Scriban
Located in London, Park Royal
18th century Italian scriban from Tuscany. Wax polished, walnut wood finish on the interior and a black lacquer patina with gilded highlights on t...
Category
18th Century Italian Louis XV Antique Secretaires
Materials
Wood
White Large Secretaire Desk, Design by Eric Gizard in Paris, made in France
By Éric Gizard
Located in Landivy, FR
This large secretary desk is mounted in our French workshops and delivered fully assembled.
The overall dimensions of the box itself are
Widt...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary French Scandinavian Modern Secretaires
Materials
Wood, Ash, Lacquer
Neo-Gothic Small Desk Secretary in Solid Oak, 1900
Located in Lüdinghausen, DE
Small desk restored neo-Gothic around 1900 solid oak secretary
Features:
Small model with two drawers
Very high quality processing
Drawers pronged
Very elaborate carved decora...
Category
19th Century Antique Secretaires
Materials
Oak
20th Century Unique French Secretary in Louis XVI Style
Located in Berlin, DE
Various veneer on solid wood. Built by the Ebenisten Jean Henri Riesener. High rectangular body. In the front two doors. Behind the writing board is an architecturally richly structu...
Category
20th Century French Secretaires
Materials
Wood
IMPORTANT ANTiQUE GEORGE II 1740 FIGURED WALNUT & HARDWOOD BROWN LEATHER BUREAU
Located in West Sussex, Pulborough
Royal House Antiques
Royal House Antiques is delighted to offer for sale this stunning original English circa 1740 Figured Walnut, Rosewood & Boxwood writing bureau with brown leath...
Category
1740s English George II Antique Secretaires
Materials
Hardwood, Walnut
Antique Flap in Walnut, Desk with Chest, Used for Travel, 18th Century, Italy
Located in Cuneo, Italy (CN)
Antique brown walnut flap, used as a desk with travel chest of the time, precious hand carved material with figures of bambocci and caryatids, built in the 1700s by Italian craftsmen and masters.
Ideal in an elegant office corner...
Category
Late 18th Century Italian Antique Secretaires
Materials
Walnut
19th Century Wellington Mahogany Chest Of Drawers Secretary Desk Dovetails Clean
By Wellington
Located in Rockaway, NJ
19th Century Wellington Mahogany Chest Of Drawers Secretary Desk Dovetails Clean
Category
19th Century English Victorian Antique Secretaires
Materials
Mahogany
Antique 19th Century Secretary Simulated Chiffonier, Napoleon III Period
Located in Vero Beach, FL
Antique 19th century secretary simulated chiffonier, Napoleon III period
A magnificent secretary simulated chiffonier. It is created with gre...
Category
19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Secretaires
Materials
Bronze
Russian Mahogany Secretary Bookcase
Located in Queens, NY
Russian (18th Century) mahogany secretary bookcase with brass gallery pediment and trim with 2 front doors revealing 3 drawers and shelves ...
Category
Late 18th Century Russian Empire Antique Secretaires
Materials
Brass
20th Century Oak Wood Dutch Bureau Desk, 1920
Located in Vicoforte, Piedmont
Dutch bureau from the first half of the 20th century. Furniture carved in oak of beautiful lines and excellent proportions. Bureau equipped with six external drawers and a central do...
Category
1920s Dutch Vintage Secretaires
Materials
Wood
Late 18th Century Italian Secretary
Located in Dallas, TX
This Italian secretary dates back to the 1780s. Item features a dozen hidden compartments as featured in the video. Origin; Italy.
Category
18th Century Italian Antique Secretaires
Materials
Walnut
Napoleon III Secretaire Abattant, 19th Century
Located in Lisbon, PT
A unique secretaire abattant cabinet with drop down writing panel with interior carved wooden rails in a yellow color wood finish.
The fall front has a green leather writing surface...
Category
19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Secretaires
Materials
Marble, Brass, Bronze
Secretaire à la Bourgogne, Transformation Table, Louis XV Style, 19th Century
Located in Greven, DE
Very rare antique desk or secretary, so-called bureau à transformation "à la Bourgogne" in Louis XV style.
France
Walnut
19th century
Dimensions: H...
Category
19th Century French Louis XV Antique Secretaires
Materials
Bronze
Biedermeier Secretaire
Located in Pompano Beach, FL
Biedermeier Secretaire made of walnut, root wood and ebony with a fall front writing surface, inside drawers and mirrored cubby hole.
Category
19th Century Antique Secretaires
Materials
Ebony
18th Century Walnut and Giltwood Secretary
Located in Dallas, TX
Very handsome English walnut giltwood secretary. Myriad drawers, pigeon holes and cupboards fill the well-appointed interior. Very functional as well as beautiful.
Category
18th Century English Antique Secretaires
Materials
Walnut
Biedermeier Secretaire
Located in Pompano Beach, FL
Biedermeier secretaire made of walnut and cherry with fall front writing surface, nine interior drawers, mirrored cubby hole and three exterior drawers. Germany circa 1840.
Category
19th Century Antique Secretaires
Materials
Cherry, Walnut
Period English Regency Secretary Cabinet with Ebonized Trim
Located in Dallas, TX
English Regency period mahogany and satinwood two-piece secretary cabinet. Pine secondary wood. Top section having a shaped cornice with an ebonized lion medallion flanked by sphinxe...
Category
Late 19th Century English Regency Antique Secretaires
Materials
Brass
Secrètaire Empire Lombardy Italy First Quarter Nineteenth Century
By Non-Standard Furniture and Lighting
Located in Milano, IT
Empire secretaire made in Milan in the early 1800s of mahogany veneered walnut and mahogany feather; on the front three drawers in the base body and on the top a drop-leaf door with ...
Category
19th Century Italian Empire Antique Secretaires
Materials
Mahogany, Walnut
English Walnut Slant Front Bureau/Desk with String Inlay
Located in Woodbury, CT
Proportioned in a smaller scale than most, this slant front bureau / desk in walnut has parallel strings of satinwood surrounding the herringbone crossbanding that is used throughout...
Category
19th Century British Georgian Antique Secretaires
Materials
Walnut
Louis XVI Style Parquetry Secrétaire, circa 1890
Located in Brighton, West Sussex
A Louis XVI style gilt bronze mounted parquetry and marquetry fall-front Secrétaire with a marble top.
Stamped to the carcass ‘10298’.
This elegantly shaped Secrétaire is deco...
Category
19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Secretaires
Materials
Ormolu, Bronze
c1810 French Empire Flame Mahogany Secretary
Located in Opa Locka, FL
c1810 French Empire Flame Mahogany Secretary. Opens to reveal lovely storage space. There are nooks, shelves, a pull out writing surface. There are gilt bronze adornments and there a...
Category
1810s French Empire Antique Secretaires
Materials
Wood
English Arts & Crafts Handmade Dark Stained Solid Oak Desk with Side Shelves
Located in Vancouver, British Columbia
Solid oak English Arts & Crafts desk with built in side shelves and removable top for ease of movement make this a practical gem. Original hardware perfectly intact and united by str...
Category
Early 1900s English Arts and Crafts Antique Secretaires
Materials
Oak
Drexel Heritage French Provincial Louis XV Carved Walnut Secrétaire À Abattant
By Drexel
Located in South Bend, IN
A gorgeous French Provincial Louis XV style drop-front secretary desk
By Drexel Heritage, "Brittany Collection"
USA, Circa 1970s
Carved walnut, w...
Category
1970s American Louis XV Vintage Secretaires
Materials
Brass
Biedermeier Secretaire
Located in Pompano Beach, FL
Biedermeier Secretaire- Dark walnut with fall front writing surface, interior drawers, secret compartments and exterior drawers.
Category
19th Century French Antique Secretaires
Baroque Secretaire, Saxony Mid-18th Century
Located in Greding, DE
An elegant Baroque secretary cabinet from Saxony, crafted in the mid-18th century. The lower section consists of a three-drawer commode with a curved apron and S-shaped legs. Above, ...
Category
Mid-18th Century German Baroque Antique Secretaires
Materials
Walnut
Vintage Edwardian Walnut Writing Desk, Sofa Table, Hall Table
Located in Germantown, MD
Versatile Edwardian style writing that can be used as console table, Sofa table or as a hall table. Simple yet elegant carving on edges. Pull out tray to make create more writing are...
Category
Mid-20th Century American Edwardian Secretaires
Materials
Walnut
20th Century Biedermeier Style Secretaire
Located in Berlin, DE
Delicate secretaire in Biedermeier style.
tulip veneer on solid pinewood, natural leather covered with gold embossing. Fine engraved, silver-gilded Bronze fixtures.
(L-Mhs-40).
Category
20th Century Secretaires
Materials
Bronze
Dutch 19th Century Oak Secretaire
Located in Delft, NL
A Dutch 19th century oak secretaire
A Dutch 19th century oak secretaire and a wooden balcony rack.
The secretaire consists of various drawers between 2 columns and a hidden draw...
Category
19th Century Dutch Antique Secretaires
Materials
Oak
Dutch 19th Century Oak Secretaire
Located in Delft, NL
A Dutch 19th Century oak secretaire
A Dutch 19th century oak secretaire on claw legs and a copper balcony rack.
The secretaire consists of various drawers and a hidden drawer.
...
Category
19th Century Dutch Antique Secretaires
Materials
Oak
Antique, New and Vintage Secretaires
Your antique, new or vintage secretary desk has become the (chic) saving grace of the "new normal" at home.
Simply put, a secretary desk is a multifunctional piece of furniture with a hinged writing surface that folds open or drops down. When the leaf is folded out, small inner storage compartments — pigeonholes, cubbies, recesses or drawers — are revealed.
Traditionally, a secretary is composed of two parts — a chest of drawers on the bottom and a cabinet with shelves on the top. Taking its name from the French word for the piece, secrétaire, the secretary desk dates back to the 18th century, when Paris-based cabinetmaker Jean-François Oeben, known for his exquisite marquetry and clever mechanical desks, is thought to have invented the secrétaire à abbattant, or drop-leaf desk.
While the defining drop-down feature of the secretary desk has remained constant, the materials used, as well as its configuration, size and style have evolved over time.
At first, secretaries were typically made from exotic woods, like rosewood, tulipwood and kingwood; later, hardwoods like cherry, maple, oak and mahogany were more common. The desks also became lighter, with space carved out of the lower half for the writer’s feet or with drawers replaced by legs — making them more table-like.
When open, the secretary is a dynamic, versatile Wunderkammer. When closed, it’s a sophisticated, space-saving piece of furniture.
“A fine secretary with a good provenance adds stature and credence to its owner — it is a cornerstone piece,” says antiques dealer Stanley Weiss, who specializes in 18th- and 19th-century English and American furniture. “In this disposable world, fine furniture is always passed on and speaks to who its owner is.”
No matter what style or period you choose, and no matter how you decide to use it, the timeless, flexible secretary desk is bound to become an indispensable part of your daily routine.
Browse a range of antique and vintage secretary desks on 1stDibs, including mid-century modern secretaires, Georgian secretaires and others.