Directoire 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.
2010s American Directoire Tables
Mahogany
1890s French Antique Directoire Tables
Marble, Bronze
Mid-18th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Brass
1960s American Vintage Directoire Tables
Walnut
2010s French Directoire Tables
Wood, Cherry, Oak
Late 20th Century French Directoire Tables
Brass
1890s French Antique Directoire Tables
Marble, Brass, Bronze
2010s Directoire Tables
Wood, Cherry, Oak
2010s French Directoire Tables
Wood, Cherry, Oak, Lacquer
Mid-20th Century Italian Directoire Tables
Marble
2010s French Directoire Tables
Wood, Cherry, Oak
1980s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Steel
1910s European Vintage Directoire Tables
Marble, Brass
18th Century and Earlier French Antique Directoire Tables
Mahogany
Early 19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Walnut
Early 19th Century European Antique Directoire Tables
Brass
Late 19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Oak, Paint
19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Bronze
Late 19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Marble, Bronze
1840s French Antique Directoire Tables
Marble, Ormolu
20th Century French Directoire Tables
Belgian Black Marble, Bronze
1890s French Antique Directoire Tables
Carrara Marble, Brass
1980s European Vintage Directoire Tables
Metal, Brass
Early 19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Mahogany
Early 19th Century European Antique Directoire Tables
Brass
Mid-20th Century French Directoire Tables
Walnut
Early 20th Century French Directoire Tables
Carrara Marble, Brass
Late 20th Century Directoire Tables
Hardwood, Lacquer
Early 20th Century French Directoire Tables
Mahogany
1960s American Vintage Directoire Tables
Mahogany
19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Brass, Ormolu
Early 19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Wood, Paint
1980s European Vintage Directoire Tables
Brass, Steel
19th Century Italian Antique Directoire Tables
Brass
1950s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Marble, Brass
20th Century French Directoire Tables
Walnut
1940s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Wood
1820s French Antique Directoire Tables
Brass
1870s French Antique Directoire Tables
Bronze
1940s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Marble, Brass
20th Century American Directoire Tables
Brass
1780s French Antique Directoire Tables
Fruitwood, Walnut
1960s European Vintage Directoire Tables
Brass
18th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Brass, Metal
1890s French Antique Directoire Tables
Carrara Marble, Brass
19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Marble, Stone, Brass, Metal
Late 20th Century Directoire Tables
Multi-gemstone, Marble, Bronze
Late 18th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Marble
19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Brass
1940s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Carrara Marble, Brass
1950s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Carrara Marble, Iron
1930s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Bronze
Early 19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Mahogany
19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Fruitwood
Early 20th Century French Directoire Tables
Marble, Brass
1950s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Marble
1970s French Vintage Directoire Tables
Marble, Brass, Steel
Late 19th Century French Antique Directoire Tables
Marble, Brass