Napoleon III Furniture
Under Napoleon III’s rule, Paris underwent a great rebuilding overseen by Baron Georges-Eugène Haussmann, which created grand avenues and lavish landmarks like the Paris Opera. Antique Napoleon III–style furniture was flamboyant and eclectic. It was also known as Second Empire style since it followed and referenced the Empire style of his uncle Napoleon I.
Developing from 1852–70, Napoleon III furniture was plush and ornate, matching the fashion for masked balls and socializing in salons. It borrowed freely from earlier French styles including Louis XIV, Louis XV and Louis XVI as well as aesthetics from around the world, from antiquity to Asian art. As writer Gustave Claudin remarked in 1867, the country’s architects worked in “a style which one would be tempted to call neo-Greco-Gothico-Pompadour-Pompeian.”
Napoleon III chairs were completely covered with velvet and lined with tassels; pouf footstools invited people to put up their feet. Sofas were upholstered with tapestries, and beds were adorned with gilt bronze and theatrical canopies. The addition of conservatories to homes led to new indoor-outdoor furniture, while the spirit of hygiene promoted by Baron Haussmann inspired bright, floral motifs.
Although the most ostentatious designs were for the elite, as seen in the Napoleon III apartments preserved in the Louvre, where red velvet, gilding and chandeliers create a cacophony of luxury, these trends influenced homes across classes as manufacturing made design increasingly accessible. Papier-mâché furniture allowed for elaborate shapes that would have been difficult to carve in wood. The malleable material was painted with chinoiserie patterns and decorative designs. It was mass-produced by factories such as Jennens and Bettridge with varnishing and mother-of-pearl inlays creating an effect reminiscent of Asian lacquer. (Surfaces that had been “japanned” — a specialty of Jennens and Bettridge — were intended to resemble lacquer work that was created in East Asia.)
Find a collection of antique Napoleon III decorative objects, tables, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.
Late 19th Century Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Ormolu
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Crystal, Onyx, Bronze, Enamel
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Wood, Paper
Late 19th Century European Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze, Iron
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Other
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Marble, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Tôle
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Malachite, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Paper
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Giltwood, Mirror
1890s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Mirror, Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Marble, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Ormolu
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Crystal, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Metal
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Pine, Gesso, Mirror
20th Century French Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
20th Century Unknown Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Ormolu
Early 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Wood
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Crystal, Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Canvas
Late 19th Century European Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Alabaster
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Fruitwood
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Porcelain
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Marble, Bronze, Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Ormolu
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Damask, Rosewood
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Porcelain
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Porcelain
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Marble, Breccia Marble, Carrara Marble
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Terracotta
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Wood, Oak
21st Century and Contemporary French Napoleon III Furniture
Mohair, Silk
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Porcelain
Early 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Giltwood
1890s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Spelter
20th Century French Napoleon III Furniture
Stone
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Marble, Bronze
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Crystal
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Gold Leaf
1930s Swedish Vintage Napoleon III Furniture
Velvet, Beech
Mid-20th Century French Napoleon III Furniture
Ceramic
1860s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Upholstery, Wood
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Leather, Paper
Mid-19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Walnut
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Enamel, Ormolu
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Iron
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Marble, Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Marble, Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Fruitwood
1860s Belgian Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
1870s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Marble
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Gold Leaf
1890s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
Late 19th Century European Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Ceramic
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
1850s Italian Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Gold Leaf
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Crystal, Metal
1880s French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Bronze
19th Century French Antique Napoleon III Furniture
Brass, Ormolu