After the Muslim conquest of the Iberian Peninsula in the eighth century, Islamic Spain became a cultural mix of influences that shaped both private homes and religious spaces. Moorish design was the name given to this style, which evolved through the 15th century with vibrant tile work, horseshoe arches and lavish ornamentation, most visible at sites such as Granada’s Alhambra and the Mosque-Cathedral of Córdoba. Moorish furniture was often similarly ornate, and featured pieces inlaid with wood, ivory and bone.
When European designers began studying Moorish art and architecture in the early 19th century, it led to a Moorish Revival. Appropriating the style’s decorative flourishes and architectural elements, it promoted a romantic view of Islamic design. Travelers could bring home a memento of what they witnessed in the Middle East, a trend that aligned with a fad for themed interiors. Men’s smoking rooms arranged with ottomans, divans and settees and inlaid tables were especially popular, as were cafés where coffee was served amid bead curtains and colorful floor mats. (Handwoven rugs are a centerpiece of Moorish interiors.) Octagonal rooms with domed ceilings were created for wealthy homes, frequently with furnishings like pipe stands, filigree plasterwork and arched doorways. The horseshoe arch is an iconic attribute of Moorish architecture that, in addition to Spain, can be found in Sicily, Morocco and elsewhere.
Several late 19th to early 20th-century movements featured Moorish touches. The American and English Aesthetic Movement, for example, borrowed liberally from global decorating styles, as seen in furniture designed by Lockwood de Forest, a New York-born artist who mixed Eastern and Western forms. The visual vocabulary of Art Nouveau also references the elegant use of geometry in Moorish design, with Milanese Art Nouveau furniture designer Carlo Bugatti drawing inspiration from the style. The Arts and Crafts movement, which prized expressive yet simple design, incorporated Moorish influences; hand-painted furniture and tile work created by William De Morgan, a British designer and potter who made furnishings for the likes of Morris & Co., were informed by techniques from Moorish Spain.
Find a collection of Moorish lighting, decorative objects, folk art and more furniture on 1stDibs.
Antique Moroccan Foldout Inlaid Game Table
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Lofty refined antique Moroccan game table with multiple uses, crafted in walnut having elaborate inlaid geometric marquetry with bone, mahogany, mo...
Bone, Mother-of-Pearl, Felt, Ebony, Walnut
Eastern Khatam Box, Hand-Crafted Inlaid Wood, Geometric Design, 1800s
Located in Reading, Berkshire
An exceptionally decorative 19th-century Eastern Khatam work table and compartmented box, finely hand-crafted with elaborate geometric inlay throughout. The hexagonal top is divided...
Brass
$1,539
H 29 in W 36 in D 18 in
1960s Georgian Furnishing Mahogany and Satinwood Inlaid Console Game Table
Located in Germantown, MD
Made of beautiful mahogany, this console features crafted satinwood inlay detailing the top, the legs and the side panels. Table opens to a beautifully banded finished top in very go...
Mahogany, Satinwood
$2,100Sale Price|30% Off
H 28.5 in W 35.5 in D 17 in
Antique Sheraton Mahogany Inlaid Octagonal Flip Top Game Card Tea Console Table
Located in Dayton, OH
Antique Sheraton period card or game table, circa 1790-1820. Made from mahogany with crotch mahogany veneer, featuring an inlaid flip top octagonal demilune top supported by square ...
Mahogany
Directoire 1800 Walnut Burl Gaming Table
Located in Atlanta, GA
A handsome Italian Directoire game table dating to circa 1800, beautifully veneered in richly figured walnut burl, prized for its dramatic swirling grain and warm tonal depth. The re...
Walnut
George III Style Satinwood Inlaid Mahogany Fold Top Game Console Table
Located in Germantown, MD
Early 20th Century George III Style Satinwood Inlaid Mahogany Fold Top Game of Console Table Measure 36" in width, 18" in depth folded in console mode, 36" in depth in Game table mod...
Mahogany, Satinwood
Charles X 1820 maple and mahogany inlaid game table
Located in Atlanta, GA
An elegant French Charles X period game table, circa 1820, masterfully crafted in mahogany with fine maple inlay throughout. The closed top is beautifully decorated with a central me...
Wood
Early 19th Century Flip-Top Game Table with Inlaid Chessboard
Located in Stahnsdorf, DE
Early 19th Century Flip-Top Game Table with Inlaid Chessboard Refined early 19th-century game table, designed for chess and card games, exemplifying the understated elegance and fin...
Cherry, Maple, Walnut
Antique Victorian Inlaid Walnut Chess Table
Located in London, GB
A superb antique Victorian inlaid walnut chess table. This was made in England, it dates from around the 1860-1880’s period. It is beautifully made predominantly from walnut, the to...
Walnut
Antique Victorian Inlaid Chess Table
Located in London, GB
An amazing antique Victorian inlaid chess table. This was made in England, it dates from around the 1860-1880’s period. It is beautifully made, the top has an inlaid chessboard made...
Wood
Italian Mahogany Inlaid Demi-lune Game Table. Circa 1790
Located in Charleston, SC
Italian mahogany inlaid two triangular drawer flip top demi-lune game table with satinwood string inlay, inlaid cross banded gallery, original brass pulls, and terminating on string ...
Moroccan Game Table, Second Half of the 19th Century
Located in Greding, DE
Game table in Moroccan style with intricately inlaid surfaces and a folding tabletop. The inside of the lid is lined with felt and serves as a playing surface. Beneath it are finely ...
Wood
Antique English Mahogany Game / Tea Table
Located in Woodbury, CT
Constructed of solid mahogany, this flip-top tea table features a unique scrolled knee and trifid foot. Beautifully grained and bearing a rich, warm patina, this table would serve we...
Mahogany
$6,500
H 29.75 in W 36 in D 18 in
American Sheraton Cherry Serpentine Tulip Wood Inlaid Game Table, Circa 1820
Located in Charleston, SC
American Sheraton cherry serpentine game table with a carved reeded edge, outset cut corners, centered lace wood plate surrounded by tulip wood i...
Brass
Antique Moroccan Inlaid Console Game Table
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Impressive antique Moroccan game table crafted in walnut with elaborate inlays and marquetry consisting of mahogany, walnut, ebony, kingwood and mother of pearl. The console top opens to a felt topped...
Mother-of-Pearl, Felt, Ebony, Kingwood, Mahogany, Walnut
Antique Moroccan Inlaid Game Table
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Remarkable antique Moroccan game table crafted in walnut featuring elaborate geometric inlays, marquetry and micro mosaics composed of mahogany, ki...
Bone, Mother-of-Pearl, Ebony, Kingwood, Mahogany
Sold
H 29.5 in W 23.5 in D 23.5 in
Intricately Inlaid Moorish Square Game Table with Pivoting Handkerchief Top
Located in San Francisco, CA
An impressively designed game table featuring a pivoting handkerchief top opening to reveal an intricately inlaid surface centering a removable center...
Wood
Moorish Gaming Table
Located in Tetbury, England
Mahogany with ebony and bone decoration. The envelope folding top with orgreen baize below, single drawer, X frame stretcher. circa 1900.
Bone, Mahogany
Middle Eastern Inlaid Games Table
Located in Laguna Beach, CA
Middle Eastern inlaid games table with backgammon and chess gaming surfaces when opened, circa 1930's. Primarily wood inlay but also some mother...
Mother-of-Pearl, Wood
Sold
H 22.84 in W 24.02 in D 12.6 in
Boho Chic Style Syrian 20th Century Artesian Inlaid Veneer Games Table
Located in London, GB
A fine marquetry, micro mosaic inlayed games table made in Syria around the turn of the 19th and early 20th Century. Complete with felt card table, c...
Bone, Hardwood
Fine Moorish Middle Eastern Arabesque Mosaic Games Table
Located in Forney, TX
A most impressive vintage Moorish Middle Eastern inlaid gaming table with additional games boards and accessories. Property from the magnificent Estate of Phyllis McGuire. Outstanding, very rare and hard to find, an exquisite work of functional art, featuring very fine quality Islamic craftsmanship, exceptionally executed, the handcrafted table having a rectangular hinged lid flip-top profusely inlaid with intricate micro-mosaic geometric and asymmetric marquetry panels of various exotics including brilliant mother of pearl and precious woods. The swivel top rotates to reveal an open interior storage compartment for game pieces, backgammon surface fitted with removable hinged lid box that opens to similarly inlaid interior with checkers board surface with reversible baize green felt cards table surface. Additional portable traveling hinged decorative box with chess board and backgammon game boards with open interior game piece storage. Includes scarce large 1.5" Crisloid bakelite backgammon checkers dice set as well as a vintage Lebanese...
Mother-of-Pearl, Hardwood
Moroccan Inlaid Game Table
Located in Nashville, TN
An intricately inlaid Moroccan gaming table. The swivel top opens to reveal three gaming surfaces. One velvet upholstered card table top with an in...
Wood
Antique Syrian Folding Games Table
Located in Dallas, TX
A beautifully shaped Syrian games table inlaid with ebony, various species of exotic woods and mother-of-pearl in geometric patterns. Rectangular top opens up into a square top with ...
Mother-of-Pearl, Velvet, Ebony, Satinwood, Harewood
French Game Table with Brass Top
Located in Highwood, IL
The Moorish style of this game table is similar to what was used in the Hôtel du Palais in Biarritz. Made in France in the late 1800s, this petite brass encrusted table could easily ...
Syrian Inlaid Marquetry Game Table
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Syrian game table, inlaid, multi games tables, velvet box to hold the game pieces. Nice marquetry inlay, elegant Moorish look. Some marquetry mis...
Wood