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Desks and Writing Tables For Sale
Period: Late 20th Century
Period: Late 19th Century
Antique Sheraton Revival Satinwood Desk
Located in London, GB
A stunning antique Sheraton Revival Satinwood desk. This dates from around the 1890-1910 period, and it was made in England. The quality is fantastic, this has beautiful brass handl...
Category

1890s British Sheraton Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Leather, Satinwood

Louis XVI style French bureau plat after Zweiner
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A fine quality, elegant late 19th century French Louis XV style Kingwood serpentine shaped bureau plat, having an inset suede covered writing surface, a single frieze drawer, wonderful gilded ormolu mounts with entwined leaf decoration, the central mount representing a military helmet and flag. Raised on elegant cabriole legs terminating in scrolling ormolu feet. Attributed to Joseph- Emmanuel Zweiner. Joseph-Emmanuel Zwiener (b. 1849) was a preeminent cabinetmaker (ébéniste) of German descent, who became one of the most famous furniture...
Category

Late 19th Century French Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Ormolu

Art Populaire Writing Table, France, 19th Century
Located in Antwerp, BE
Art Populaire; Folk Art; Monoxylite; Wabi Sabi; Writing Desk; Rustic; Travail Populaire; Antique; 19th Century; Writing Table; 19th-century folk art writing desk, a timeless piece ...
Category

Late 19th Century French Rustic Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Wood

Louis XVI Style Ladies Desk, after Francoise Linke, 19th Century
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A fine quality late 19th century French Louis XVI style ladies writing desk, having an inset leather top, wonderful Fine gilded ormolu mounts, a single frieze drawer opening to revea...
Category

Late 19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Kingwood

Marc van Rampelberg Freestanding Desk in Solid Iroko
Located in Waalwijk, NL
Marc van Rampelberg, freestanding writing desk, iroko, Kenya, 1980s. This solid Iroko freestanding desk is manufactured in Kenya and designed by the Belgian designer Marc van Rampe...
Category

1980s Kenyan Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Hardwood

Blue Painted Pine Farm Table Writing Table With 2 Drawers, Sweden circa 1860-80
Located in Round Top, TX
The cheerful blue painted finish has a distressed patina revealing years of use in this small farm table from Sweden. Notice the two usable drawers with brass pulls that add function...
Category

Late 19th Century Swedish Country Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

Dakota Jackson French Art Deco Postmodern Mahogany Executive Partners Desk 96"
Located in Dayton, OH
Vintage Dakota Jackson post modern Art Deco style executive partners desk featuring mahogany with leather insert and stainless steel frame. A V-Shape pattern veneer top with Black Leather inset. 2 pedestal cabinets below: each with 2 standard drawers and 1 file drawer, front and back. Polished Stainless Steel drawer pulls, post, floor plates, and arced trestle supporting desktop. DJ Chelsea Black Leather, Polished Polyresin finish. Dakota Jackson (born August 24, 1949) is an American furniture designer known for his eponymous furniture brand, Dakota Jackson, Inc.,[1] his early avant-garde works involving moving parts or hidden compartments,[2][3] and his collaborations with the Steinway & Sons piano company.[1] Jackson helped establish the art furniture movement in 1970s SoHo,[4][5] later becoming a celebrity designer in the 1980s.[6][7][8] His background in the world of stage magic helped him get his first commissions and is often cited as the source of his point-of-view.[6][9] Early life Dakota Jackson was born on August 24, 1949, and grew up in the Rego Park neighborhood of Queens, New York. Stage Magic Jackson's father, Jack Malon, was a professional magician.[10] Mr. Malon learned the trade from his own father, who studied stage magic in early 20th century Poland.[1] Jackson began studying magic at a young age and sometimes performed with his father.[11] Jackson's name, in fact, grew out of a road trip to Fargo, North Dakota.[11] Throughout his adolescence and into his early 20s, Jackson immersed himself in the world of magic.[2] In 1963, Jackson began to perform in talent shows at his junior high school, William Cowper JHS 73 (which is known today as The Frank Sansivieri Intermediate School),[12] and at children's birthday parties.[13] Jackson also began to build his own props, including large boxes for sawing a woman in half and small boxes from which doves would emerge in full flight.[11] Jackson acknowledges the importance of these early experiences with magic to his later career as a furniture designer: "The demands of performance taught me how to discipline myself to achieve aesthetic ends."[1][2][14] After Jackson graduated from Forest Hills High School in 1967, he continued performing as a magician, working in art galleries, night clubs, touring in the Catskills, and giving private performances at society events.[2][13][15] When he was 17, Jackson had studied with magician Jack London to learn the dangerous bullet catch trick.[16] "What appealed to me was the notion of doing things that appeared miraculous" Jackson once recalled.[6] "I was interested in spiritualism. I was interested in things like bullet catching, things that really challenged individual sensibilities, that were frightening, on the edge."[2] He didn't find the opportunity to perform the trick publicly until a decade later at Jackson's final professional performance as a magician.[1] It was documented in Andy Warhol's Interview (magazine), in a story titled "Dakota Jackson bites the bullet."[1][16] Jackson admits that he sometimes tires of references to his magician background, although he acknowledges it as an important part of his history.[2] The Downtown Arts Scene In the late 1960s, Jackson moved into a loft on 28th Street in Chelsea.[1][17] Jackson became part of the Downtown scene, a community of "artists, dancers, performers, and musicians" who moved to the neighborhood for the cheap rent and social life.[1][8][17][18] In October 1970, Jackson performed with the Japanese group Tokyo Kid Brothers at New York's La MaMa Experimental Theatre Club (also known as Café La MaMa) in a rock musical production called "Coney Island Play" ("Konī airando purē).[19] The show explored themes of cross-cultural communication and understanding[19] and was a follow up to the group's debut performance of "The Golden Bat" at La MaMa earlier that summer.[20][21][22] Jackson played the part of a "clever conjurer."[19] Over the next few years, Jackson became interested in minimalist dance and performed in the dance companies of Laura Dean and Trisha Brown.[2][15][23] Jackson credits his exposure to minimalism and minimalist dance in particular as having had a strong influence on his approach to design; in 1989, Jackson told the Los Angeles Times: For me the essential fineness of a design is in the idea, not the object itself ... In minimalism, the object is pared down to its basic meaning by stripping away all the excrescence ... —those elements that do not contribute to the pure idea.[24] Design career In the early 1970s, as he experimented with performance and dance, Jackson began branching out as a special effects consultant to other magicians, film producers, and musicians[2][23] such as Donna Summer.[6][9] The loft also gave Jackson an opportunity to apply his creativity and building skills: "These were times when lofts were not ... luxury condominiums. These were tough, tough raw spaces ... and we artists, bohemians, creative people, we created our environment. So I had to build".[17][25] Recognizing his skills as a builder, Jackson decided to shift away from performance and become a full-time maker.[1][15][17] He began making a variety of objects, including furnishings for other artists and magic boxes with hidden compartments for art collectors and galleries.[17][24] Jackson's social connections helped spread word about his work[15] and this led to his first commissions.[1] Early Commissions Desk for John Lennon by Dakota Jackson In 1974, Jackson's career as a designer began when Yoko Ono asked him to build a desk with hidden compartments for husband John Lennon.[26] "She wanted to make a piece of furniture that would be a mystical object; that would be like a Chinese puzzle," Jackson recalled in a 1986 interview published in the Chicago Tribune.[6] The result was a small cubed-shaped writing table with rounded corners reminiscent of Art Deco era style.[15] Touching secret pressure points opened the desk's compartments.[23] This commission helped build Jackson's reputation and allowed him to merge his experience as a magician and performer with his developing interest in furniture.[27] In 1978, a bed designed for fashion designer Diane von Furstenberg garnered Jackson even more notoriety.[8][10][28] [29] Called "The Eclipse", the bed was described in The New Yorker as "large, astounding, sumptuous, with sunbursts of cherry wood and quilted ivory satin at head and foot."[10] A lighting system positioned behind the headboard switched on automatically at sunset and spread out rays of light "like an aurora borealis,"[2][17] which grew brighter and brighter until turning off at 2 am.[23][30] Commissions like these continued to come in[8] and Jackson soon became known as a designer to the rich and famous.[30] Some of his other clients from this period included songwriter Peter Allen, Saturday Night Live creator and producer Lorne Michaels, Rolling Stone publisher Jann Wenner, and soap opera actress Christine Jones.[8] The American Art Furniture Movement and the Industrial Style In the late 1970s, Jackson was among a small group of artists and artisans producing and exhibiting hand-made furniture in New York.[5][31] Jackson and his peers were part of the "American Art Furniture Movement," a group sometimes called the "Art et Industrie Movement,"[32] named after the leading art furniture gallery of the era,[32] Art et Industrie, founded by Rick Kaufmann in 1976.[33] In a 1984 Town & Country article titled "Art You Can Sit On," Kaufmann said he created the gallery to "serve as a locus to the public for artists and designers creating new decorative arts."[31] The works on display were "radical objects" that drew from a number of fine art traditions, including "Pop, Surrealism, Pointillism and Dada [which were] "thrown together with the severe lines of the Bauhaus and the Russian avant-garde, mixed with Mondrian's color and filtered through a video sensibility—all to create a new statement."[31] The article described Jackson as a "ten-year veteran of the genre" and pointed to the "clean forms and quiet colors" of his furniture.[4] Jackson showed a variety of industrial-looking lacquer, metal, and glass works at Art et Industrie, including his Standing Bar (also known as the Modern Bar),[33] a lacquered cabinet that Jackson designed in 1978 for his wife (then-girlfriend) RoseLee Goldberg.[13] Other works from this period include the T-Bird Desk, Self-Winding Cocktail Table, and the Saturn Stool...
Category

Late 20th Century Art Deco Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Stainless Steel

Custom Floating Lucite, Steel and White Lacquered Two Drawer Desk Vintage
Located in North Miami, FL
This vintage custom made sensational floating desk with 2 drawers has a recessed glass top that floats on steel pegs around the entire desk; the 2 part lucite sides come together with a steel round disk at center at the back and the white lacquered drawers float on the left hand side with chrome...
Category

1970s American Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Steel

Set of two Andalusian chairs in yellow ocre polychrome wood with birds
Located in BILBAO, ES
Set of two Andalusian chairs in yellow ocre polychrome wood with birds From the 1980´s Very Romantic with a chalky classic finish for interiors with a soft country style Upholstery ...
Category

1980s Portuguese Baroque Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Wood

19th Century Renaissance Barley Twist Stripped Oak Desk
Located in Dallas, TX
19th Century Renaissance Barley Twist Stripped Oak Desk features clockwise & counter clockwise barley twist columns in pairs on each side, providing ...
Category

1870s French Napoleon III Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Oak, Leather

Arts & Crafts American Oak Library Table Desk With Barley Twist Legs
Located in Southampton, NJ
American antique Arts & Crafts solid quarter sawn Oak library table with original finish. Unusual in its distinct Mission & English influences. Boasts a single drawer with impressive...
Category

1890s American Arts and Crafts Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Oak

Le Corbusier L6 Style Table Base for Cassina
Located in New York, NY
Le Corbusier L6 style table base for Cassina. Selling without glass.
Category

1990s American Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Steel

French Mid-Century Desk in Black Lacquer with Brass Details by Jean Claude Mahey
Located in Salzburg, AT
Straight-lined desk in a clear design by French designer Jean Claude Mahey. The object is made entirely of beech wood and is very heavy. The desk has 3 drawers with folding brass ha...
Category

1970s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

Massimo Scolari for Giorgetti Zeno Beech and Ebony Desk, 1990s
Located in London, GB
Designed by Massimo Scolari for Giorgetti in 1994, the Zeno desk is a fantastic example of modern Italian design. The desk is construc...
Category

1990s Italian Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Beech

CRAFTIQUE Solid Mahogany Chippendale Secretary Desk w/ Bookcase
Located in Charlotte, NC
A stunning secretary desk with bookcase by top-quality furniture maker Craftique, in the style of early American John Hancock desks. Solid mahogany with their Old Wood finish, brass ...
Category

Late 20th Century American Chippendale Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

French Louis XV Style Figural Bronze Ormolu Leather Top Bureau Plat Writing Desk
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Vintage French Louis XV Style Figural Bronze Ormolu Leather Top Bureau Plat Writing Desk. Item featured is a large impressive size, stunning bronze figural female bust mounts on all ...
Category

Late 20th Century Louis XV Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Bronze

Scandinavian desk by Erik Brouer for Brouer Mobelfabrik, Denmark 70's
Located in Brussels , BE
Scandinavian desk by Erik Brouer for Brouer Mobelfabrik, Denmark 70's
Category

1970s Danish Scandinavian Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Wood

Rena Dumas & Peter Coles In Collaboration With Hermès "Pippa"
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
Rena Dumas (1937-2009) & Peter Coles (1955-1985) in collaboration with Hermès Pippa Travel desk and folding stool Pearwood, leather and brass Edition Hermès Stamped 'P.R. Hermès Pari...
Category

Late 20th Century Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

Large Italian Desk by Hans von Klier for Skipper, 1970s
Located in Lasne, BE
Desk with leather and wood top and chromed metal legs designed by Hans Von Klier in the 70s. Wear due to time and age of the desk.
Category

1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Metal

Italian C.1970s Modernist Jewellery table
Located in London, GB
A late 1970s Northern Italian Modernist desk in marble, steel and leather custom built for a high end jewellers in Milan.
Category

1970s Italian Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Marble, Steel

Ernest H. Igl for Bayer AG 'HADI' desk set
Located in Wien, AT
Ernest Igl for Bayer AG, 'Hadi' desk, set including adjustable chair and lamp, polyurethane, Germany, 1970s This design by Ernest Igl truly resembles the ethos of the seventies, fe...
Category

1970s German Post-Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Polyester

19th Century French Renaissance Revival Desk
Located in Dallas, TX
19th Century French Renaissance Revival Desk is a magnificent example of master cabinetmaking by French artisans from the 1850s to the end of the century. Utilizing hand-select old-...
Category

1870s French Renaissance Revival Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Oak

Classic Bamboo & Lacquer Campaign Desk With Chair By E. Murio
Located in Austin, TX
East meets West, Bamboo meets Lacquer. Add a generous helping of mid-century charm to your surroundings with this Bamboo & Lacquer Campaign Desk by Murio. Serve your workspace needs ...
Category

1970s Philippine Campaign Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Upholstery, Bamboo

Antique French Louis XVI Gold Bronze Mounted Kingwood Writing Table, Circa 1885
Located in New Orleans, LA
Antique French Louis XVI Gold Bronze Mounted Kingwood Writing Table, Circa 1885.
Category

Late 19th Century French Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Bronze

Standard Furniture Mid Century Walnut and Brass Executive Desk
Located in Countryside, IL
Standard Furniture Mid Century Walnut and Brass Executive Desk This desk measures: 66 wide x 36 deep x 29 high, with a chair clearance of 24.5 inches All pieces of furniture can be...
Category

1970s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

19th Century French Walnut writing table
Located in Eindhoven, NL
Beautiful antique walnut writing table with brown leather top. The table has 3 drawers on one side and the other sides are not drawers but look like they are. The table is richly dec...
Category

1870s French Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Walnut

Executive Desk By Poul Norreklit for Georg Petersen Møbelfabrik in Denmark
Located in San Diego, CA
Poul Nørreklit desk model GP 160 by Georg Petersens Møbelfabrik, Denmark Rare and collectible lucite and rosewood desk. Lucite slab sides with beautifully grained Rosewood case, luc...
Category

1970s Danish Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Lucite, Rosewood

Mario Botta “Tesi” Dining Table for Alias, Italy 1980
Located in Argelato, BO
A very rare desk/dining table designed by Mario Botta, model “Tesi”, manufactured by Alias in, Italy around 1980. This eye-catching piece has a clear glass rectangular top allows th...
Category

1980s Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Metal

20th Century Palisander Mahogany Wood Marble French Napoleon III Bureau, 1870s
Located in Vicoforte, Piedmont
French bureau from the end of the 19th century. Finished for the center furniture from the Napoleon III era, finely veneered in palisander and mahogany. Slightly rounded and moved bu...
Category

1870s French Napoleon III Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Marble

Art Nouveau Mahogany stepped desk
Located in Paris, FR
Elegant stepped desk in mahogany and mahogany veneer. Gilt bronze frame opening with a drawer inlaid with leaf and flower stems. The front features a drawer with an ormolu catch and ...
Category

1890s French Art Nouveau Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Mahogany

Fine American-Made Leather Top Brass Ormolu Louis XV Style Bureau Plat Desk
Located in Swedesboro, NJ
This is a beautiful American-made desk with age -crackled leather and a nice original ebonized frame and gold pinstriping with brass ormolu. Measures 67 wide x 30 tall x 33.25 deep...
Category

1980s American Louis XV Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

Scandinavian Modern Teak Writing Desk by Jesper
Located in Trenton, NJ
Introducing an exceptional vintage centerpiece for your workspace – this Scandinavian Modern Teak Desk. Drawing inspiration from iconic mid-century Danish design, this desk embodies ...
Category

Late 20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Wood, Teak

19 century kis barokk iroasztal
Located in Kerepes, HU
Annak ellenére hogy kis méretű es élig kevés hely foglal, több funkció is tud teljes mertekben használni: toalettasztal, kis író asztal egy előtérben meg egy kényelmes dolgozó laptop...
Category

Late 19th Century Hungarian Baroque Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Other

White Painted Gustavian Style Table Writing Desk With One Drawer, circa 1860-80
Located in Round Top, TX
Swedish Gustavian style table with single fluted drawer and tapered legs. Restored, later professionally painted in layered shades of white now distressed to add to the character and...
Category

Late 19th Century Swedish Gustavian Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Wood, Paint

Victorian Sycamore Partners Desk
Located in Altrincham, GB
A fabulous Victorian partners desk in beautiful mellow sycamore - double pedestal with front drawers and cupboard rear with tooled leather insert top c1860 - 66"ww x 36"d x 32"h (25...
Category

1870s English Victorian Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Leather, Sycamore

Mahogany and burr leather top pedestal desk
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Mahogany and burr leather top pedestal desk circa 1990. Good example of a 19th century designed desk. Which is in 3 sections, being the top and 2 pedestals. Top surface with green ...
Category

Late 20th Century English Victorian Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Leather, Mahogany

Desk By Guy Lefèvre - Metal & Wood - Ca 1970
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
Elegant desk by Guy Lefèvre dating from the 1970s. Its chrome metal structure and black lacquered wooden box are typical of the French style of the 1970s. Just like Maison Jansen, Ro...
Category

1970s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Metal

French Petite Wooden Mid-Century Desk
Located in London, GB
A stylish petite desk. France, c1970s. In the manner of Maison Regian. Likely to be elm or very well simulated elm wood. Ideal as a desk or vanity unit. Good condition gene...
Category

1970s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Elm

Antique Italian Renaissance Revival Walnut Figural Library Table Writing Desk 52
Located in Dayton, OH
Antique Neo-Renaissance Revival parlor / library table or writing desk, circa 1870s Made of walnut featuring Neoclassical styling with high relief figural carvings of cherubs / putti...
Category

1870s Renaissance Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Walnut

Giancarlo Piretti, Platone Folding Desk for Anonima Castelli, 1971
Located in London, GB
One of the most influential Italian designers of the twentieth century, Giancarlo Piretti’s chair designs – for which he is most celebrated – have sold millions worldwide. Piretti’s...
Category

1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Steel, Chrome

Open Block Writing Desk by Global Views
Located in Los Angeles, CA
W60 D31.5 H29.25 KC26 Contemporary desk in great gently used condition. Item is structurally sound and sturdy with no large areas of wear. Item features one minimal drawer that hide...
Category

1970s Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Rosewood

Antique Victorian Oak Leather Top Writing Table / Desk
Located in London, GB
An impressive antique Victorian oak leather top writing table / desk. This was made in England, it dates from around the 1870-1890 period. It is of superb quality, solid oak through...
Category

1890s British Late Victorian Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

Postmodern Dalmatian Pongo Desk by Pierre Colleu for Starform and Disney, 1980s.
Located in Lille, FR
Table height: 50 cm. Total height with the head: 80 cm Good condition. Some chips on the top.
Category

1980s French Post-Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Resin, Plastic

Victorian late 19th century carved oak pedestal desk
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Victorian late 19th century carved oak pedestal desk circa 1890. Good quality pedestal oak desk, comprising of 3 sections.  Shaped top with original leather insert.  Single drawer a...
Category

Late 19th Century English Late Victorian Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Oak

19th Century French Louis XIV Style Carved Walnut Library Table Writing Desk
Located in Forney, TX
A finely carved French Louis XIV style walnut writing table. circa 1870 Hand carved in France in the late 19th century, exceptionally executed in grand King Louis 14th taste, hand-c...
Category

Late 19th Century French Louis XIV Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Faux Leather, Walnut

Theodore Alexander French Regency Louis XVI Painted Walnut Writing Desk
Located in South Bend, IN
An exceptional French Regency Louis XVI style bureau plat desk or writing desk By Theodore Alexander, "Ateliers de la Madeleine" Circa Late 20th Century Painted walnut case, with ...
Category

Late 20th Century Unknown Louis XVI Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Brass

19th Century French Louis XVI Style Mahogany Desk, Writing Table, Leather Top
Located in Fayetteville, AR
This Late 19th Century French Louis XVI style mahogany desk features a gold tooled red leather top surrounded by a bronze trim border. The corners are detailed with bronze striated plaques. Two drawers of dovetail construction are fitted with bronze square drop handles. The table rests...
Category

Late 19th Century French Louis XVI Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Bronze

Louis XV Style Rocaille Side Table In Walnut
Located in SAINT-CLÉMENT-DE-LA-PLACE, FR
This table is molded. Its scalloped belt opens to a drawer. The drawer is dovetail mounted to ensure perfect solidity. The drawer can be opened daily and hold many objects. It slide...
Category

1870s French Napoleon III Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Walnut

Wooden desk by Ricardo Bofill
Located in PARIS, FR
Large varnished wood desk by Spanish designer Ricardo Bofill for Habitat, 1980s. The desk features numerous storage compartments throughout the structure. Very good condition. LP2034
Category

Late 20th Century Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Wood

1970s Writing Desk, Italy
Located in Praha, CZ
- Item was carefully refurbished - sturdy and stable - mahogany veneer
Category

1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Metal

Cavalletto Table Desk by Kazuhide Takahama for Gavina, Italy 1970s
Located in Argelato, BO
Rare project by the Japanese architect and designer Kazuhide Takahama for Gavina. Metal base, top covered with billiard cloth. It can easily be used both as a desk and as a dining t...
Category

1970s Italian Post-Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Metal

Rare 19th century carved mahogany Swedish pedestal desk
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Rare 19th century carved mahogany swedish pedestal desk circa 1880. Beautiful desk and rare to be made from mahogany for a swedish piece, believed to be from skottorp castle in the ...
Category

Late 19th Century Swedish Victorian Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Mahogany

Mid-Century Modern T333 Desk by Oslvado Borsani and Eugenio Gerli for Tecno
Located in Brussels, BE
Mid-Century Modern T333 Desk by Oslvado Borsani and Eugenio Gerli for Tecno, Italy, 1975
Category

1970s Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Chrome

Guido Faleschini writing desk for Mariani, 1970
By Faleschini
Located in Manzano, IT
Guido Faleschini writing desk for Mariani, 1970 Strong and stable, important office desk by Guido Faleschini. Glass shelf, aluminum profiles and alcantara upholstery. Aluminum 8-draw...
Category

1970s Italian Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Aluminum

Scandinavian Modern Teak Executive Desk
Located in Trenton, NJ
This Vintage Scandinavian Modern Teak Executive Desk from Jesper Furniture makes a timeless masterpiece that combines elegant design with exceptional craftsmanship. Crafted with rich...
Category

Late 20th Century Danish Scandinavian Modern Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Teak

Mid-Century Modern Desk by Afra and Tobia Scarpa, Stildomus 1970s
Located in Brussels, BE
Mid-Century Modern Desk by Afra and Tobia Scarpa, Stildomus 1970s
Category

1970s Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Wood

19th Century French Renaissance Writing Desk ~ End Table
Located in Dallas, TX
19th Century French Renaissance Writing Desk ~ End Table is a work of the sculptor's art, that also serves as a convenient student desk, writing table or library table. Hand-carved ...
Category

1870s French Renaissance Antique Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Oak

Czechoslovakian Writing Desk by Bohumil Landsman for Jitona, 1970s
Located in Poznań, PL
An oak desk designed by Bohumil Landsman, produced during the 1970's in former Czechoslovakia by a furniture factory Jitona. A striking design. Surfaces cleaned, stained and lacquer...
Category

1970s Czech Mid-Century Modern Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Materials

Oak

Antique and Vintage Desks and Writing Tables

Choosing the perfect writing desk or writing table is a profoundly personal journey, one that people have been embarking upon for centuries.

Queen Atossa of Persia, from her writing table circa 500 B.C., is said to have been the originator of the art of handwritten letters. Hers was reportedly the first in a long and colorful history of penned correspondence that grew in popularity alongside literacy. The demand for suitable writing desks, which would serve the composer of the letters as well as ensure the comfort of the recipient naturally followed, and the design of these necessary furnishings has evolved throughout history.

Once people began to seek freedom from the outwardly ornate styles of the walnut and rosewood writing desks and drafting tables introduced in the name of Queen Victoria and King Louis XV, radical shifts occurred, such as those that materialized during the Art Nouveau period, when designers longed to produce furniture inspired by the natural world’s beauty. A prime example is the work of the famous late-19th-century Spanish architect Antoni Gaudí — his rolltop desk featured deep side drawers and was adorned with carved motifs that paid tribute to nature. Gaudí regularly combined structural precision with decorative elements, creating beautiful pieces of furniture in wood and metal.

Soon afterward, preferences for sleek, geometric, stylized forms in furniture that saw an emphasis on natural wood grains and traditional craftsmanship took hold. Today, Art Deco desks are still favored by designers who seek to infuse interiors with an air of luxury. One of the most prominent figures of the Art Deco movement was French decorator and furniture designer Émile-Jacques Ruhlmann. With his use of neoclassical motifs as well as expensive and exotic materials such as imported dark woods and inlays of precious metals for his writing desks, Ruhlmann came to symbolize good taste and modernity.

The rise in appreciation for Scandinavian modernism continues to influence the design of contemporary writing desks. It employs the “no fuss” or “less is more” approach to creating a tasteful, sophisticated space. Sweden’s master cabinetmaker Bruno Mathsson created gallery-worthy designs that are as functional as they are beautiful. Finnish architect Alvar Aalto never viewed himself as an artist, but, like Mathsson, his furniture designs reflected a fondness for organic materials and a humanistic approach. Danish designers such as Hans Wegner introduced elegant shapes and lines to mid-century desks and writing tables, often working in oak and solid teak.

From vintage desks to contemporary styles, 1stDibs offers a broad spectrum of choices for conducting all personal and business writing and reading activities.

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