British Colonial Tables
Typically made of mahogany, teak or bamboo and featuring a range of fabrics and prints with botanical patterns, antique British Colonial furniture and decor varies as it involved local materials and techniques and spanned centuries of design styles.
As the British Empire expanded from the 16th to the 20th century, its conquest and control of colonies around the world bolstered its wealth through the extraction of resources. Including colonies in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Australasia, this spread of often violent subjugation imposed British culture, language and faith on Indigenous peoples. The design of homes was included in this expression of imperial power, with government officials, merchants and military officers creating homes mimicking the luxuries they were used to in England.
Local artisans were commissioned to replicate British designs, resulting in versions of Regency, Chippendale, Sheraton and other styles of furniture being crafted from mahogany, rosewood, ebony and teakwood as opposed to beech and oak, which were more common in Europe. Whereas the colonial furniture for the Portuguese and Dutch regularly had motifs of indigenous flora and fauna, the British tended to want more exact reproductions of their home country’s designs.
To escape the summer heat in places such as India and the Caribbean, British colonizers relocated to airy houses in the hills or plantations, leading to foldable chairs and collapsible desks in the style of military campaign furniture. Rather than upholstery as they might have in Europe, chairs and sofas in the British Colonial style had rattan and cane seating for these higher temperature climates. The contrast between the light textiles and the dark colors of the sturdy furniture became a defining aesthetic of British Colonial interiors.
Find a collection of antique British Colonial outdoor furniture, seating, bedroom furniture, decorative objects and other items on 1stDibs.
18th Century Unknown Antique British Colonial Tables
Cherry
19th Century English Antique British Colonial Tables
Wood
Mid-20th Century Burmese British Colonial Tables
Teak
Early 19th Century Caribbean Antique British Colonial Tables
Brass
19th Century Sri Lankan Antique British Colonial Tables
Ebony
1890s Antique British Colonial Tables
Teak
20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Bamboo
Early 19th Century Indian Antique British Colonial Tables
Padouk
20th Century English British Colonial Tables
Wood
Mid-20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Brass
19th Century English Antique British Colonial Tables
Mahogany
Early 20th Century English British Colonial Tables
Brass
1890s British Indian Ocean Territory Antique British Colonial Tables
Bamboo, Rosewood
Late 20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Bamboo, Rattan
Mid-19th Century Indian Antique British Colonial Tables
Wood
20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Bamboo, Cane
Mid-20th Century Philippine British Colonial Tables
Faux Bamboo
Late 20th Century British Colonial Tables
Brass
Early 20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Hardwood
20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Rattan
1910s Unknown Vintage British Colonial Tables
Brass
Late 20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Bamboo, Laminate
Mid-20th Century Unknown British Colonial Tables
Bamboo
Mid-20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Brass
Mid-19th Century American Antique British Colonial Tables
Mahogany
1890s English Antique British Colonial Tables
Walnut
20th Century Philippine British Colonial Tables
Rattan
Late 19th Century Unknown Antique British Colonial Tables
Oak
20th Century American British Colonial Tables
19th Century Jamaican Antique British Colonial Tables
Mahogany, Palmwood, Satinwood
19th Century Trinidadian Antique British Colonial Tables
Mahogany, Cedar, Satinwood, Rosewood
Mid-20th Century British Colonial Tables
Composition
20th Century American British Colonial Tables
Bamboo
2010s British Colonial Tables
Brass