Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Formed in the wake of the Jacobin Reign of Terror’s bloody guillotine, the Directoire was established to lead France into order through the leadership of a five-member council of directors. It was brief, lasting only from 1795 to 1799, ending with Napoléon Bonaparte’s coup d’état, and was economically tumultuous. Yet it was an essential bridge between the era of Louis XVI and the elaborate Empire style that followed, with Directoire furniture and decorative arts shaped by a royal passion for classical design and an enthusiasm for postrevolutionary France.
Much of the country’s furniture production had halted during the French Revolution when the furniture guilds system was abolished, but during the Directoire period, the cabinetmakers restarted their businesses, such as François-Honoré-Georges and Jacob-Desmalter who established a new workshop called Jacob-Frères. Pieces made in walnut, elm, mahogany and other inexpensive materials incorporated influences ranging from Egypt to Pompeii, with popular forms including the curule armchair based on an ancient Roman design. The aesthetics of the transitional style were more austere than during the monarchy, with court cabinetmaker Jean-Baptiste Sené, for instance, reimagining his workshop’s neoclassical-style furniture with ungilded surfaces and a reduction of ornamentation.
Symbols referencing the revolutionary tenets of liberty, equality and fraternity were frequently carved into Directoire furnishings, such as the Phrygian cap, clasped hands and the fasces, which is an image of a bound bundle of sticks adopted from the Roman Republic, where it was seen as an emblem of strength through unity.
Elements of the French Directoire style continued through Empire style. Designers Charles Percier and Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine are credited today as major proponents of both movements. The classically inspired furniture design is represented in pieces such as the boat-shaped daybed and the klismos chair, which endured in French interiors as well as in styles abroad, including American Directoire.
Find a collection of antique Directoire chairs, tables, daybeds, decorative objects and other furniture on 1stDibs.
1950s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass
19th Century European Antique Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Fruitwood
1970s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass
2010s French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood, Cherry
Mid-20th Century Italian Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Mahogany, Walnut
1950s Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass, Chrome
Mid-20th Century Argentine Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Silver Leaf
2010s Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood, Cherry, Oak
Mid-20th Century French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Steel, Bronze
1980s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Steel
2010s American Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Mahogany
1970s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Metal, Gold Leaf
1820s French Antique Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Oak
20th Century French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Aluminum
1980s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Steel
20th Century French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass, Steel
19th Century French Antique Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Bronze
1990s French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Steel
1950s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Bronze
1950s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass, Steel
1950s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Marble, Bronze
20th Century Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
1950s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wrought Iron
2010s French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood, Cherry
2010s French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood, Cherry
1950s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Brass, Steel
Early 2000s North American Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Gold Leaf
2010s French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood, Cherry, Oak
2010s French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Wood, Cherry, Oak
Mid-20th Century French Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Carrara Marble, Brass
1950s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Bronze
1940s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Bronze
1960s Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Carrara Marble, Metal
1960s French Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Steel, Brass
1950s Vintage Directoire Coffee and Cocktail Tables
Mirror, Wood