Biedermeier Furniture
The authentic Biedermeier furniture on 1stDibs is representative of the first modern European decorative style not dictated by the tastes of the aristocracy. Following the Napoleonic wars, a growing, wealthy urban middle class in the German-speaking states of Central Europe began to demand rights and privileges once granted only to nobles. To avoid trouble, the upwardly striving confined their political discussions to one another’s homes. And so the salon was born.
Cabinetmakers in cities such as Vienna, Berlin and Mainz began to offer goods that reflected the tastes and needs of the new class. The makers of Biedermeier chairs, tables and other furniture used little or no gilding, silver hardware or other lavish ornament. Ebonized trims are common on Biedermeier cabinetry, and neoclassical elements — lyre-shaped chair splats, carved scrollwork, table supports shaped like Greek columns. But the strongest aesthetic statement came from the wood — richly-grained, honey-colored, often book-matched veneers of walnut and fruitwood.
There are two iconic Biedermeier furniture forms, both made to outfit rooms designed for conversation. One is the sofa, deeply upholstered with a strong, architectural wooden frame. The second is the circular pedestal table, which stood at the center of the room, offering a surface on which to place coffee and cake services; or to roll out a map, or sketch out ideas on paper.
“Biedermeier” was originally a derogatory term — it derives from the pen names of two German magazine writers who mocked bourgeois manners. Looking at the elegant and refined antique, new and vintage Biedermeier furniture offered on 1stDibs, that is now an amusing irony.
19th Century Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Glass
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Ash, Burl
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Iron
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
Early 1800s French Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Brass
Early 19th Century Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Pine, Walnut
20th Century Biedermeier Furniture
Fabric, Upholstery, Wood, Lacquer
1830s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
20th Century American Biedermeier Furniture
Wood
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
Late 19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
1940s European Vintage Biedermeier Furniture
Birch, Pine
1890s Norwegian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut, Spruce
Mid-19th Century Unknown Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Ebony, Maple
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry, Softwood
Late 19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry
Early 19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
20th Century Austrian Biedermeier Furniture
Wood
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Cane, Wood
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Brass
20th Century American Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry
19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Wood, Rosewood
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Maple
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany, Upholstery
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
Mid-19th Century Danish Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mirror, Giltwood
Late 19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Walnut
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Maple
1910s Austrian Vintage Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut, Lacquer
1830s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Marble
Late 20th Century European Biedermeier Furniture
Paint
1830s Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Brass
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Linen, Oak
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
20th Century American Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut, Burl
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Nutwood
1810s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Wood
19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Pine
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Brass, Iron
1850s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Bronze
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Pine
19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Iron
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
1850s French Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Brass
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Porcelain
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Porcelain
Late 19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mirror, Walnut, Giltwood
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry, Spruce
Early 1900s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry
20th Century Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Cherry
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry