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Secretaires

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Secretaires For Sale
Louis XVI Cylinder Desk, South German, 1780-1800
Located in Belmont, MA
Exquisite Louis XVI Cylinder Desk, South German, 1780-1800, with beautiful walnut veneer on the outside and on the inside, including the writin...
Category

1780s German Louis XVI Antique Secretaires

Materials

Walnut

Neoclassical Roll-Top Desk, Austria, circa 1800
Located in Greding, DE
Large roll-top desk out of solid cherry wood. The base with seven drawers stands on tapered legs. The top has one very slim pullout and a low arcade balustrade on three sides. The in...
Category

Early 1800s Austrian Neoclassical Antique Secretaires

Materials

Cherry

“Elefantini” Secrétaire by Roberto Rida, Italy, 2016
Located in New York, NY
Palm wood drop-down secretary/vanity, comprising a console-base supporting a cabinet decorated with 120 bronze elephants. The inside features a drawer with a bone pull. A matching be...
Category

2010s Italian Modern Secretaires

Materials

Bronze

Early 19th Century French Empire Flame Mahogany Drop Front Secretary Desk
Located in Miami, FL
Classic antique French Empire drop front "abattant" secretary desk made with magnificent high quality flame mahogany adorned with bronze doré mounts and its original gray marble top....
Category

Early 19th Century French Empire Antique Secretaires

Materials

Bronze

Bamboo Secretary Cabinet Desk with Turned Bronze Legs and Bronze Hinges
Located in Bangall, NY
The bamboo secretary is a contemporary take on a traditional cabinet used for letter writing. The beautiful bronze hinges are contrasted with a modern bamboo laminate product for the case, with turned metal legs. All the drawers run on bamboo slats...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary American Secretaires

Materials

Bronze, Steel

18th C. Louis XV Bureau Scriban Bibliotec Secretary Cabinet Mahogany Antiques LA
Located in West Hollywood, CA
18th century Louis XV Bureau Scriban Bibliotic Secretary Cabinet Mahogany Antiques LA. An important rare and Tall Scribing bibliotic secre...
Category

18th Century French Louis XV Antique Secretaires

Materials

Wrought Iron, Metal, Metallic Thread

Antique Biedermeier Secretary in Cuban Mahogany, Copenhagen, circa 1820
Located in Miami, FL
An exquisite Biedermeier secretary in very fine Cuban/ West Indies mahogany with all of the original appointments which include the hardware, pulls and keys. The cabinet's joinery, a...
Category

Early 19th Century Danish Biedermeier Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

Fall-Front Desk in West Indies Mahogany, Attrib to Gustav Friederich von Hetsch
Located in Miami, FL
A very lovely secretary with serpentine front in beautiful West Indies/ Cuban mahogany attributable to Danish architect and painter, Gustav Friederich von Hetsch (1788-1864). A mirro...
Category

1830s Danish Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

Louis XVI Style marquetry inlaid Secrétaire abattant.
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A good quality French 19th century marquetry inlaid secretair abbatant. Having a serpentine marble-top, a drop leaf section, opening to reveal a fitted interior, three serpentine fro...
Category

Mid-19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

Museum Biedermeier Secretary Signed by Adolph Friedrich Voigt, circa 1825
Located in Berlin, DE
Museum Biedermeier secretary signed by Adolph Friedrich Voigt, circa 1825 Fire-gilt fittings. High quality Cuba mahogany on solid linden wood. Architecturally structured front. Rect...
Category

Early 19th Century German Biedermeier Antique Secretaires

Materials

Wood, Mahogany

Sublime Early 19th Century French Secrétaire
Located in Stockbridge, GA
Sublime early 19th century French secrétaire.
Category

Early 19th Century French Restauration Antique Secretaires

Materials

Leather, Walnut

Italian mid-century wood archive stand, 1940s
Located in MIlano, IT
Italian mid-century wood archive stand, 1940s Walnut archive dresser from forties, made in Italy. 28 drawers, with brass handles, were used to manage months and months of job, and st...
Category

1940s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Secretaires

Materials

Brass

Napoleon III 'Sevres' Porcelain and Ormolu-Mounted Bureau De Dame, circa 1860
Located in New York, NY
A fine Napoleon III Sevres style porcelain and ormolu-mounted tulipwood and parquetry Bureau De Dame, circa 1860 With stepped rectangular superstructure with three shaped rectangu...
Category

1860s French Antique Secretaires

Materials

Bronze

18th Century Walnut Scriban Secretary
Located in Marseille, FR
Secretary scriban walnut 18th century Provençal work in used condition.
Category

18th Century French Louis XV Antique Secretaires

Materials

Walnut

Hollywood Regency Secretary Desk Secretaire Bookcase w/ Chinese Motif
Located in Van Nuys, CA
Hollywood Regency secretary desk secretaire bookcase with hand-painted Chinese motif featuring a breakfront cabinet with a small secretary ...
Category

1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Secretaires

Materials

Wood

Biedermeier Fall Top Desk, South German, 1820
Located in Belmont, MA
Classic Biedermeier fall top desk, South German, 1820, walnut veneer on the outside and mahogany veneer on the inside. It has a beautiful veneer grain. T...
Category

1820s German Biedermeier Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany, Walnut

Transformation Secretary circa 1795 by Johann Michael Vetter, Neuwied, Mahogany
Located in Epfach, DE
Transformation secretary circa 1795 by Johann Michael Vetter, Neuwied, Mahogany Secretary with in height adjustable standing desk different ...
Category

Late 18th Century German Directoire Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

18th Centurey Baroque Walnut Tabernacle / Secretaire
Located in Darmstadt, DE
The Tabernacle Secretaire is divided into 3 parts. The upper part has a door with a snap lock in the middle, in this compartment the three small drawers on the right and left side c...
Category

18th Century Austrian Baroque Antique Secretaires

Materials

Brass

18th century, Italian Solid Walnut Wood Trumeau
Located in IT
18th century, Italian solid walnut wood Trumeau Measures: height cm 239, width cm 122, depth cm 52, depth raised cm 30 Elegant Trumeau, made in piedmont, north of Italy, in th...
Category

Mid-18th Century Italian Louis XV Antique Secretaires

Materials

Bronze

Late 19th Century Gilt Bronze Mounted Inlaid Marquetry Bureau a Cylindre
Located in New York, NY
An exquisite late 19th century Louis XVI style gilt bronze mounted inlaid marquetry and parquetry bureau a cylindre The stepped rectangular top with pierced three quarter gallery ...
Category

Late 19th Century French Belle Époque Antique Secretaires

Materials

Bronze

Louis XVI Secretary with Cylinder Top & Tambour Front Northern Europe circa 1800
Located in Miami, FL
A Louis XVI secretary desk in mahogany with satinwood inlays. Offers a cylinder top that opens to reveal a series of small drawers surrounding...
Category

Early 19th Century European Louis XVI Antique Secretaires

Materials

Leather, Mahogany, Satinwood

1920s Lombard Secretary Desk Commode in Walnut & Burl Veneer, Threaded Maple
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Early 20th Century Lombard Secretary Desk Commode in Walnut & burl Veneer, Threaded of Maple. Elegant walnut flap. It has a front with three drawers and a calatoia door. Trhee large...
Category

Early 19th Century Italian Baroque Revival Antique Secretaires

Materials

Walnut, Burl

Louis XVI Fall Top Secretaire, France, 1780-1800
Located in Belmont, MA
Stunning Louis XVI Falltop Secretaire, made in France, circa 1780-1800, rosewood, kingwood and walnut veneer and beautiful flower marquetry. The kingwood veneer parts are framed by a...
Category

1780s French Louis XVI Antique Secretaires

Materials

Kingwood, Rosewood

18th Century Serpentine Bow Front Butler's Desk or Bureau Desk
Located in Madrid, ES
This is a beautiful example of a "Butler's Desk" which was used in the 18th and 19th centuries by the head servant of a household. Basically a bureau combined with a standing desk, clothing and personal items could be stored in lower drawers and important papers and records would be kept in the desk, which closes up and slides into the body of the bureau when not in use. This piece is in particularly fine shape, exhibiting rich wood grain and a sliding desk...
Category

18th Century Spanish Antique Secretaires

Materials

Walnut

Frank Brangwyn a Rare Desk Originally Designed for the 1931 Pollard Exhibition
By E. Pollard & Co, Frank Brangwyn
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

18th Century Walnut Inlaid Dutch Bureau Secrétaire
Located in Roma, RM
Dutch Bureau, in walnut root, finely inlaid with floral motifs in fruit wood. Side shapes moved like the front, original hardware. In excellent state of ...
Category

1770s Dutch Louis XVI Antique Secretaires

Materials

Walnut, Fruitwood

Empire Secretaire, Vienna, circa 1810
Located in Greding, DE
Viennese secretaire on square pointed feet with bronze sabots. The body with beveled corners has a two-door base, a writing flap with central lock and one top drawer. The front side ...
Category

1810s Austrian Empire Antique Secretaires

Materials

Bronze

French Empire Secretaire a Abattant with Cuban Acajou Mahogany
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
This secretaire a abattant is the in French Empire style and is veneered in Cuban acajou mahogany, with bronze doré mounts and a gray Saint Anne marble top. Dimensions Closed: Height: 56.5 in. (143.51 cm) Width: 38 in. (96.52 cm) Depth: 15.75 in. (40.01 cm) Overall Cabinet Depth with the slant-front opened is 33.75". The desk top/slant opened is 21.38" deep. The piece has three lower drawers which are lockable (key included) and the single hidden drawer at the top. The interior has five document and accessory storage drawers. The fall-front (which locks) retains its original tooled leather border (with a Greek-Key pattern) and a later replacement dark green felt.   The bronze doré mounts on the drawers are cornucopias which symbolize bounty. The fall-front has a mount with scrolling roses and foliage. There are two mounts with a male and female profile. The male has a baby owl on his helmet which symbolizes wisdom. And hanging from the females hair-band is a peacock which symbolizes the ability to see all. The fall front desk can be considered the cousin of the secretary desk. Both have a main working surface or desktop which does double duty as a cover to seal up papers and other items located in small shelves or small drawers placed one on top of the other in front of the user. Thus, all working papers, documents and other items have to be stored before the desk is closed. Unlike the secretary desk, the fall front desk's desktop panel is in a perfectly vertical position when in its closed position. Often, there are no additional shelves or drawers above the section which is enclosed by the desktop. Thus, the fall front desk is identical in shape to a Barguen~o desk which would have been placed on a Stand of drawers, or more precisely to the form known as Desk on a chest or as "chest-on chest". The fall front desk is also called a drop front desk or drop-front desk, and sometimes also a drop lid desk...
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Secretaires

Materials

Marble, Bronze

18th Century Empire Secretary Veneered with Mahogany
Located in Opole, PL
We present you an antique piece of furniture covered with mahogany veneer with beautiful grain. It is topped with a green marble board. The whole is dated the turn of the 18th and th...
Category

Late 18th Century French Empire Antique Secretaires

Materials

Marble

19th Century Mahogany Inlaid Slope Front Secretaire Bookcase
Located in Dublin 8, IE
19th century mahogany inlaid slope front secretaire bookcase with astragal glazing below a dentil cornice, four graduating drawers with marquis...
Category

Early 19th Century Irish Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

Large Robsjohn-Gibbings Dresser Secretary w Bookcase
Located in Rockaway, NJ
Mid-century modern Robsjohn Gibbings walnut multifunction cabinet.
Category

20th Century American Mid-Century Modern Secretaires

Antique Walnut Secretaire Ladies Desk by Pioneer of Liverpool w. Inlaid Shell
By Pioneer Complete Furnishing Stores
Located in Lisse, NL
Practical small desk with a built-in chest of drawers. Because of the large homes that many of the rich who could afford quality furniture lived in, many antique pieces of furniture...
Category

Early 20th Century British Edwardian Secretaires

Materials

Brass

Empire Fall Top Desk, France, 1810
Located in Belmont, MA
Introducing a remarkable Empire Fall Top Desk, hailing from France during the period of 1800-1810. Crafted with meticulous attention to detail, this magn...
Category

Early 1800s European Empire Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

Louis XV Style Commode/ Secretary with Leather Writing Surface, 3 Drawers
Located in Houston, TX
Early 20th century, the rectangular top with projecting corners and a three-quarter pierced brass Gallery, above a conforming case fitted with three drawers, all with applied mounts...
Category

Early 20th Century French Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

Antique French Charles X Secretary/Secrétaire à Abattant in Mahogany, c. 1825
Located in Miami, FL
A Charles X secrétaire à abattant in mahogany, France, circa 1825. Fall-front has original counter weight for ease in lowering and closing. Dark green tooled leather on desk top appe...
Category

1820s French Charles X Antique Secretaires

Materials

Leather, Mahogany

Louis XVI Style Secretary by H. Dasson, France, Circa 1880
Located in PARIS, FR
A very fine Louis XVI style upright secretary, executed in veneered wood, finely decorated with painted medallions representing mythological scenes. Fine chiseled and gilded bronze m...
Category

1880s French Louis XVI Antique Secretaires

Materials

Bronze

Italian Early 20th Century Bovolone Secretary Desk Commode, finely inlaid walnut
Located in Vigonza, Padua
Early 20th century Bovolone - Verona - secretaire commode. In hand-carved walnut, veneer walnut with maple finely inlaid . Wax polished Measures cm: H 88, W 90, D 35.
Category

Early 20th Century Italian Louis Philippe Secretaires

Materials

Maple, Walnut

Irish Georgian Secretary
Located in Greenwich, CT
Fine and unusual 18th century Irish mahogany bureau bookcase, the pierced gallery top with Gothic details, the pilasters and door with rich and crisply carved shell and foliate desig...
Category

1750s Irish Georgian Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mercury Glass, Mahogany

English Regency Rosewood Secretaire
Located in New York, NY
English Regency rosewood secretaire cabinet with two upper shelves supported by a lyre form over a secretaire drawer fitted with a leather wri...
Category

Mid-19th Century English Regency Antique Secretaires

Materials

Rosewood

19th Century Hand Painted Secretary with Hidden Drawers and Floral Decorations
Located in Sofia, BG
Secretary with "lacquered" decoration in the style of Coromandel lacquers decorated with chrysanthemums, flower vases and other beautiful objects. Rectangular, it opens with four dra...
Category

Early 19th Century French Antique Secretaires

Materials

Wood

Chapman Italian Neoclassical Burl Wood Patchwork Olivewood Tall Secretary Desk
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Chapman Italian neoclassical burl wood patchwork olivewood tall secretary desk. Item features 2 part construction, lighted interior with dimmer swi...
Category

20th Century Italian Neoclassical Secretaires

Materials

Burl

19th Century Louis XVI Floral Marquetry Writing Cabinet or Lady's Secrétaire
Located in Berlin, DE
19th Century Louis XVI Floral and Musical Instruments Marquetry Writing Cabinet or Lady's Secrétaire, also called "Bonheur du Jour" A 19th century bonheur du jour writing cabinet o...
Category

Late 19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Secretaires

Materials

Wood

Louis Phillipe North German Fall-Front Secretary in Flame Mahogany, circa 1855
Located in Miami, FL
A captivating one of a kind Louis Phillip secretary in book-matched, flame mahogany with shaped, curvi-linear drawer fronts and faux drawer fronts on the fall-front and the sides. Of...
Category

Mid-19th Century German Louis Philippe Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

Venetian Hand-Painted Blind Door Secretary with Bookcase, Circa 1900
Located in Hollywood, SC
Venetian blind door secretary with a carved scrolled decorative cornice, upper case bookcase with hand-painted parrots and foliage, slant top reve...
Category

Early 1900s Italian Neoclassical Antique Secretaires

Materials

Brass

Louis XV Style Kingwood Bureau de Dame by Alphonse Giroux et Cie
Located in Montreal, QC
This parquetry desk has the attributes one would expect when bearing the name to one of Paris leading retailers of objet deluxe. It is bombe...gently swelling and raised on cabriole legs. It is applied with oval porcelain panels which we have not dismounted but are to Sevres standard. It extensively mounted with bronze chutes sabots and moldings of various sorts. Including a bronze pierced plaque with the monogram of the owner. It is in a small way, highly evocative of 19th century Paris at its best. This company flourished between the consulate and 1867 when it closed. It enjoyed Royal patronage and was certainly a leading supplier of luxury goods of the highest quality. Maison Giroux, the famous curiosity and luxury goods shop, was situated at No. 7 rue du Coq-Saint-Honoré and in business from the time of the Consulate until the end of the Second Empire. The business was founded in 1799 by Francis Simon Alphonse Giroux, cabinetmaker and official restorer of Notre Dame. “Maison Alphonse Giroux” also known as “Giroux & Cie” specialized in producing ornate objects d’art and technically sophisticated furniture. Patronized by various members of the French Royal Family, including Louis XVIII, Charles X, Henri...
Category

Late 19th Century French Belle Époque Antique Secretaires

Materials

Bronze

Early 18th Century French Petite Secretaire or Bureau with Projecting Cabinet
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Early 18th-century French dark wood secretary or fall-front bureau cabinet with charming proportions. Featuring a carved projecting cornice and arched front, original glass mirror fr...
Category

18th Century and Earlier French Antique Secretaires

Materials

Wood

Antique 18th Century Baroque Bureau with Inlays
Located in Kastrup, DK
A very beautiful Baroque bureau. Thick walnut veneer with inlays. Hidden "secret" locking system for the drawers in the upper section. Grate quality Ni...
Category

18th Century Italian Baroque Antique Secretaires

Materials

Brass, Iron

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

19th Century French Marble-Top Secretaire Bronze Decoration Napoleon III Period
Located in Sofia, BG
French chiffonier forming secretary, inlaid with violet wood and rosewood, flap opening with four drawers with red marble top. Falling cuffs and keyholes in gilded bronze. Napoleon ...
Category

Mid-19th Century French Napoleon III Antique Secretaires

Swiss Early 19th Century Empire Bureau Cabinet, Signed Hirschgartner
Located in Worpswede / Bremen, DE
This fine Empire drop-front secretary (secrétaire a'abattant or secrétaire en armoire) with a writing and standing desk is signed M. Hirschgartner. Hans Martin Hirschgartner (1766-18...
Category

19th Century Swiss Empire Antique Secretaires

Materials

Marble

Art Nouveau Secretaire Cherrywood
Located in Darmstadt, DE
A beautiful Secretaire made of solid cherrywood, from the time of Art Nouveau, circa 1900. The interior of the middle section was covered with bird’s-eye maple veneer and looks so be...
Category

Early 1900s German Art Nouveau Antique Secretaires

Materials

Birdseye Maple, Pine, Cherry

Vintage Rosewood Secretary Style of Koloman Moser Portois & Fix, 20th Century
Located in Vienna, AT
The extraordinary vintage secretary/cabinet in the style of Koloman Moser, Carl Otto Czeschka and Portois & Fix is a top quality furniture piece, which was designed and made in the 2...
Category

20th Century Secretaires

Materials

Oak, Rosewood, Mother-of-Pearl, Ebony

French Empire Mahogany Bureau à Cylindre Writing Table, circa 1810
Located in Rome, IT
A French gilt-metal mounted mahogany bureau à cylindre writing desk. With a grey marble top over three drawers, the fall enclosing a sliding tan lea...
Category

19th Century French Empire Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

Secretaire / Scriban Art Deco in Maple Veneer, circa 1950
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Secretaire / scriban art deco in maple veneer, circa 1950 Medium condition, small lack of wood, veneer, varnish to redo.
Category

1950s European Art Deco Vintage Secretaires

Materials

Maple

20th Century Dutch Writing Cabinet, 1960s
Located in Den Haag, NL
Dutch writing cabinet hand built by a master craftsman, circa 1960s featuring ornate inlay work and numerous drawers and compartments. Very impressive piece and great quality.
Category

Mid-20th Century Dutch Louis XVI Secretaires

Materials

Wood

Unique Secretary attributed to Rene Prou, 1950s
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Unique secretary or writing table attributed to French designer Rene Prou. In Sycamore with unusual curved facade and sides. Three drawers front with original mirrored hardware...
Category

1950s French Vintage Secretaires

Materials

Sycamore

Early 19th Century English Desk
Located in Stockbridge, GA
Early 19th century English desk.
Category

Early 19th Century English Antique Secretaires

Materials

Leather, Mahogany

Early 19th Century Duncan Phyfe Grecian Plain Style Mahogany Secretary Bookcase
By Duncan Phyfe
Located in Brooklyn, NY
An important piece of American furniture, attributed to the shop of Duncan Phyfe, circa 1840. To quote "Duncan Phyfe: Master Cabinetmaker in New York," 2011 (Kenny, Brown). "At its best, Phyfe's Grecian plain style furniture captures, the strength, simplicity and noble repose that characterize the best Greek Revival architecture. Phyfe achieved this effect by using the classical orders, often in abstracted form, and a quiet yet radiant palette of warm-toned rosewood and mahogany veneers, meticulously selected and applied in architectural manner." This secretary employs the finest available mahogany and follows in the strict adherence to proportion and form that made this expression of Phyfe's later career so powerful. The piece exactly matches a description of a piece sold at auction dissolving the Phyfe showroom and warehouse in 1844. The "Grecian standard" or scroll leg with the molded pedestal base and convex disc are all hallmarks of Phyfe's iconic work from 1834-1841. The cornice is supported on either side by scroll brackets which have lambs tongue details below, features linking it to another Phyfe secretary bookcase sold through Northeast Auctions...
Category

1830s American American Classical Antique Secretaires

Materials

Mahogany

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.

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