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.
Mid-20th Century Swedish Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry, Nutwood
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Leather, Birch, Cherry
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Linen, Upholstery, Walnut
1820s Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
1810s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Birch, Mahogany, Maple
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Metal
20th Century Austrian Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Fruitwood
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Metal, Brass
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Metal, Brass
Early 20th Century English Biedermeier Furniture
Birdseye Maple, Wood
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Brass
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Linen, Upholstery, Wood, Walnut
19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Birch, Pine, Lacquer
Early 19th Century English Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Silver
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Cherry, Walnut
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut, Spruce
1830s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Metal, Brass
Mid-19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Baize, Mahogany
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Walnut
1830s Russian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Fabric, Cherry
Mid-20th Century German Biedermeier Furniture
Birch, Textile
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
Early 20th Century Swedish Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
1830s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
1960s Italian Vintage Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Cherry
19th Century Danish Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Metal, Brass
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
1990s American Biedermeier Furniture
Marble, Brass
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Burl
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Porcelain
Late 19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Fruitwood, Cherry, Mirror
1850s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut, Fir
Early 19th Century Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry
21st Century and Contemporary Vietnamese Biedermeier Furniture
Wood
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Upholstery, Maple
1860s Swedish Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Fabric, Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
Late 20th Century Swedish Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
Early 19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Brass, Other
1840s Unknown Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Walnut
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Nutwood, Spruce
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Brass
19th Century Unknown Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Ebony, Glass, Walnut
Mid-19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Porcelain
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Fruitwood
Mid-20th Century German Biedermeier Furniture
Birch
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Mahogany
1750s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Steel
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry, Maple, Nutwood, Spruce
Mid-19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Metal, Brass
Early 20th Century German Biedermeier Furniture
Porcelain
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Furniture
Cherry
2010s Spanish Biedermeier Furniture
Brass