From 1804–15, Napoléon I reigned as the emperor of France, bringing the country into a new era of opulence after the fall of the monarchy and the tumultuous years of the French Revolution. He declared, “We must have very solid things, made to last 100 years.” Empire-style furniture followed suit, with imposing pieces constructed from mahogany and adorned with gilded ornaments. Expanding on the neoclassicism popularized in the previous century — such as in Louis XVI style — Empire style borrowed from the great civilizations of antiquity, from Egypt to Greece and Rome, to connect this nascent empire to the power of the past.
Napoléon I believed the production of fine furniture would reflect the stature of the republic, with his official architects Charles Percier and Pierre-François-Léonard Fontaine leading the way with their work on his residences.
Luxurious materials, symmetrical shapes and bold colors characterize antique Empire-style bedroom furniture, armchairs, cabinets and other structures, with frequent motifs including mythological creatures, geometric designs, acanthus leaves, eagles, bees (the imperial emblem) and swans, a favorite of Empress Joséphine.
Flat surfaces, like marble tabletops, were accented with decadent details, such as the bronze furniture mounts made by sculptor Pierre-Philippe Thomire for the French palaces. Martin-Guillaume Biennais, who worked as the imperial goldsmith, crafted intricate luxury objects that mixed wood, fine metal, mother-of-pearl and ivory. Ormolu — or elaborate bronze gilding — was essential to French design in the 18th and 19th centuries as a cornerstone of the neoclassical and Empire styles.
The style became popular abroad, influencing the American Empire style. Stately pieces carved with sprigs of olives by cabinetmaker Pierre-Antoine Bellange were acquired by American President James Monroe for the White House in 1817.
Find a collection of antique Empire tables, lighting, seating and other furniture on 1stDibs.
$2,894Sale Price|20% Off
Early 19th Century Italian Empire Small Antique Desk
Located in Casale Monferrato, IT
We offer this fantastic small antique Italian desk dating back to the early 19th century, during the sumptuous Empire period. This desk, crafted from fine walnut, is characterized b...
Bronze
Brass and marble jaguar coffee table, 1970s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Stunning coffee table with two brass jaguar sculptures mounted on marble column bases and a clear rectangular glass top. This empire style coffee table and style often attributed to...
Belgian Black Marble, Brass
$12,700
Empire Centre Table
Located in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltshire
Empire Centre Table A large French Empire centre table in figured mahogany with ormolu mounts, bronze feet and the original dished yellow-veined da...
Mahogany
French Country Provincial Biedermeier Cherry Marble Side Table Ice Bucket Holder
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Please message us with your zip code to request a more reasonable domestic U.S. shipping quote. Vintage French Country Provincial Biedermeier Style Cherry Wood Marble Side Table w/ ...
Marble
Baker Furniture Stately Homes Collection Burl Wood and Ebonized Regency Table
Located in South Bend, IN
A gorgeous Empire, Regency, or Biedermeier style round pedestal breakfast table, game table, or center table From the exclusive "Stately Homes" Collection by Baker Furniture USA, C...
Ebony, Burl
Pair of Neoclassical Empire Marble-Topped Consoles with Gilt Sphinx Supports
Located in Elkhart, IN
Elegant and theatrical, this pair of Neoclassical Empire console tables captures the enduring appeal of French Empire design through a refined palette of pale blue-gray paint, richly...
Marble, Ormolu
$3,250 / item
Early 19th Century French Empire Walnut Console
Located in Atlanta, GA
Early 19th Century French Empire Walnut Console with Ebonized Marble Top & Bronze Dore Details, ca. 1810
Walnut
19th Century Bronze Ormolu Swan Koi Fish Empire Wood Marble Round Table
Located in Fort Lauderdale, FL
On offer on this occasion is one of the most stunning table you could hope to find. This is an ultra-rare opportunity to acquire what is, unequivocally, the best of the best, it being a most spectacular and beautifully presented bronze ormolu swans...
Marble, Bronze
19th Century burr birch empire revival console table
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
19th Century burr birch empire revival console table circa 1880. Good quality Swedish burr birch side table, ideal for use in the hallway, but suitable for most rooms around the hom...
Birch
$3,400Sale Price / set|20% Off
Pair of French Empire Style Bronze Mounted Demilune Mahogany Console Tables
Located in Swedesboro, NJ
Dimensions - H: 40 1/2in W: 50 1/2in D: 14 1/2in This is an EXCEPTIONAL Pair of French Empire Style Consoles! They are made of the highest quality! Made out of the Finest Mahogany ...
Bronze, Ormolu
Incredible Russian Gilt Bronze Gueridon with a Granite Top, 19th Century
Located in Ottawa, Ontario
An Incredible Russian gilt bronze Gueridon with a granite top, 19th century. The circular black painted top within a turned wood border frieze painted with laurel leaves and pink ri...
Granite, Bronze
Italian Empire Period Center Table Early 19th Century
Located in Atlanta, GA
The round top a white marble, crisply edged and set above a beautifully grained mahogany or rosewood veneered apron. The base features a fluted black column rising from a triangular ...
Marble
Pair Empire Style Mahogany Two-Tier Single Drawer Side Tables
Located in Germantown, MD
Pair Empire Style Mahogany Two-Tier single drawer Side Tables Dimensions: 23.5" in width, 16.5" in depth and 24 inches in height.
Mahogany
Antique Empire Two Drawer Worktable or Stand in Flame Mahogany
Located in Doylestown, PA
Antique 19th century Empire stand with two drawers in flame mahogany. It features dovetailed drawers with original wood knobs, a finished back and boldly carved legs with acanthus le...
Mahogany
Antique Empire Ormolu Mounted Bureau Plat Desk Writing Table 19th Century
Located in London, GB
This is a fine antique French gilt-bronze mounted flame mahogany Empire bureau plat, Circa 1820 in date. The rectangular top is fitted with a black gold-tooled inset leather writing...
Mahogany
French Empire Style Marble-Top Painted Center Table
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
French vintage mid-century Empire-style center table, a silhouette revived by the famous Maison Jansen, and updated more recently in a fresh new color. The surface is a heavy disc of...
Marble
Italian 1820s Empire Walnut Guéridon Table with Three Drawers and Rams' Heads
Located in Atlanta, GA
An Italian Empire walnut guéridon table from the early 19th century, with three pop-out drawers and gilt rams' heads. Born in Italy during the first quarter of the 19th century, this...
Walnut, Giltwood
Italian Empire Console Table with Gilt Eagle Base and Marble Top
Located in Queens, NY
Italian Empire late 18th Century / early 19th Century console table with a variegated marble slab and gilt caved acanthus leaves wooden top supported on a gilt carved base depicting ...
Marble, Gold Leaf
Important and Very Rare Pair of Micromosaic, Malachite and Walnut Console Tables
By Antonio Deangelis
Located in London, GB
Important and very rare pair of micromosaic, malachite and walnut console tables Italian & Russian, early 19th century Measures: Height 89cm, width 106.5cm, depth 62cm These exceptionally beautiful antique console...
Malachite, Ormolu
Important 19th Century Italian Console Table
Located in Gloucestershire, GB
Large, important early 19th Century North Italian console or side table of monumental proportions. This outstanding table is of large size and retains its original marble top of 42...
Marble
Antique French Empire Style Walnut Dining Table with Leaf
Located in Dallas, TX
Antique French Empire Style Walnut Dining Table with Leaf will bring understated elegance to your dining experience! Hand-crafted from sumptuous walnut, it features six tapered legs...
Brass
19th Century, French Wood Travel Desk
Located in IT
19th Century, French Wood Travel Desk Measures: cm H 103 x W 52 x closed D 9. Open D 59 cm This particular travel desk was made in France, in the earl...
Wood
Maison Jansen Style Polished Steel & Brass Galleried Glass Top Side Tables
Located in Germantown, MD
A magnificent of French Maison Jansen style Empire Revival brass and polished steel side tables with brass gallery and inset glass tops, each with three legs joined by X-form stretch...
Brass, Steel
Empire mahogany and gray marble top center table
Located in Houston, TX
This large round empire style table has a marble Fior Di Bosco In gray hues With white veining. It has three circular legs that are tapered with gilt bronze capital banding. It...
Marble
Classic French 18th Century Empire Walnut Kneehole Writing Desk
Located in Hopewell, NJ
Found near Paris, France, we purchased this museum quality 18th century Empire style desk for its impeccable quality and style. Made predominantly from walnut and featuring Empiric s...
Walnut
19th Century Swedish inlaid burr birch oval occasional table
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
19th century inlaid burr birch oval occasional table circa 1870. Good quality swedish burr birch center table that could be used for multiple purposes around the home. Oval shape w...
Birch
Maitland Smith French Empire Green Greek Key Sunburst Round Dining Center Table
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Please message us with your zip code to request a more reasonable domestic U.S. shipping quote. Vintage Maitland Smith French Empire Green Greek Key Sunburst Round Dining Center Tab...
Glass, Wood, Lacquer
$4,201Sale Price|20% Off
Side table with secret compartments, Westphalia, c. 1800, plum, maple, rosewood
Located in Münster, DE
Rare side table with secret compartments, Westphalia, c. 1800, plum wood, maple and rosewood veneered on softwood, table top with floral banding and vase motif, ingenious mechanism w...
Fruitwood, Maple, Rosewood
Antique French Empire Fruitwood Console Table with drawer, Early 20th Century
Located in Miami, FL
Antique French Empire- Biedermeier fruitwood console table with drawer and bronze details In good original condition with minor wear consistent with age and use, preserving a beaut...
Bronze
Pair of Reproduction Empire Revival Gueridon Tables
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
A small yet dramatic pair of French Empire inspired reproduction side tables. Nero Marquina black marble tops are ringed with bronze bezels, su...
Marble, Metal
Mid 19th century Swedish ebonised dressing table with classical detail
Located in London, GB
A decorative and functional ebonised Swedish dressing table in a Empire style with angular cornice and applied gilt rosette detail to the support columns of the mirror. The dressing ...
Wood
Swedish 19th century inlaid empire revival birch side table
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
19th century inlaid empire revival birch work table circa 1880. Rectangular top surface veneered in birch and decorated with a inlaid border. Single lockable drawer fitted with pine...
Birch
Late 19th Century birch sewing table with contents
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
Late 19th century birch sewing table with contents circa 1895. Good quality find on our travels around Sweden, complete with contents which we decided to keep with the piece. Bookm...
Birch
French 19th Century Mahogany Empire-Style Table
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
An outstanding French Empire-style mahogany accent table with a unique basket wrapped around the pedestal. A circular wood top with raised trim rests on an apron housing two small dr...
Mahogany
Vintage Flame Mahogany Convertible Game Table
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
This exquisite antique flip-top games table is a testament to 19th-century craftsmanship, featuring a breathtaking flame mahogany veneer that ripples with deep, shimmering grain. Dra...
Brass
French 19th Century Empire St. Mahogany and Ormolu Executive Desk
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
An extremely handsome and impressive French 19th century Empire st. mahogany and ormolu executive desk. At the frieze is a central wider drawer flanked by smaller drawers at each sid...
Ormolu
19th Century French Empire Table
Located in Chicago, IL
In the French Empire (1804-1815) period, grandeur was often measured in gilt bronze—sphinxes, swags, laurel wreaths gilded to catch the light. But every so often, a piece turns up th...
Mahogany
French 19th Century Empire-Style Dressing Table
Located in Baton Rouge, LA
This exceptional mahogany dressing table is complete with its original mercury glass pivoting mirror and white marble top. The mirror exhibits some foxing and is framed with beautifu...
Ormolu
Empire Style Side Table, French Wood with Black Marble Top, 1910
Located in Austin, TX
Gueridon, French, in the Empire style. This piece has three swan legs on a triangular base supporting the top covered with a veined black marble top (professionally repaired).
Marble
Pair of Empire-Style Marble Top Gold Gilt & Painted Pedestals
Located in Southampton, NJ
Pair of Italian Empire-style gilt and painted pedestals topped with Kastoria Red Marble from Greece, circa 1960. In very good vintage condition having polished marble and solid frame...
Marble
$8,169Sale Price|30% Off
Faux Malachite Empire style Centre Table
Located in London, GB
Stunning French Empire Style Center Table Faux Malachite Stunning Center Table
Ormolu
19th Century Wood with Marble Top Empire Style Italian Console Table, 1880s
Located in Vicoforte, Piedmont
Italian console table from the late 19th century. Empire-style furniture, carved and veneered in high-quality mahogany. The console table features a spacious central drawer and a fab...
Marble, Bronze
$1,493Sale Price|20% Off
Side table blue scagliola top metal base handmade in Italy by Cupioli available
Located in Rimini, IT
This table can be used as tea table, side table, lamp table it has multiple uses. The top is manufactured in scagliola art inlay, same technique of the "Paliotto" of the 16th century...
Iron
Rich Mahogany Antique American Empire Round Pedestal Center Table
Located in Hopewell, NJ
Rich looking round mahogany American Empire antique center table with ebonized pedestal and gilded details. Structurally sound having turned feet and castors. A 48” round piece of ...
Wood, Mahogany, Giltwood
$5,577 / item
Empire Stellar Dining Table
Located in Westwood, NJ
Empire style round dining table with beech and quartered walnut veneer and a stellar parquetry inlaid top with a molded edge on a tapered octagonal column base and quatrefoil concave...
Wood
French Empire Walnut Pedestal Table with Round Marble Top and Tripod Base
Located in Atlanta, GA
A French Empire period walnut table from the 19th century with circular marble top, pedestal and tripod base. Evoke the elegance of 19th-century France with this resplendent French E...
Marble
Italian 19th Century Rolo Inlaid Center Table
Located in Atlanta, GA
A remarkable Italian mid-19th century Rolo center table, celebrated for the refined marquetry tradition of the renowned Rolo workshops in Reggio Emilia. The circular top is exquisite...
Wood
French Empire style leather top mahogany writing desk, C 1890
Located in Philadelphia, PA
French Empire style leather top mahogany writing desk having bronze mounts, claw feet and resting on slabs of green marble (optional) C 1890.
Marble, Bronze
Large Empire-Style Ormolu and Malachite Centre Table
Located in London, GB
Large Empire-style ormolu and malachite centre table French, 20th Century Height 85cm, width 165.5cm, depth 85.5cm This superb centre table pairs vibrant malachite with classical o...
Malachite, Ormolu
Antique French Empire Style Bronze Mounted Figural Partners Desk
Located in Swedesboro, NJ
Dimensions: 31.75 inches high x 63.5 inches wide x 30.25 inches deep An exceptional example of early 20th-century French craftsmanship, this antique Empire style partners desk datin...
Bronze
Outstanding Pair of 19th Century Italian Empire Console Tables
Located in Houston, TX
Outstanding Pair Of 19th Century Italian Empire Console Tables. This beautiful pair of free standing antique early 19th century Italian period ...
Walnut
19th Century French Empire Guéridon Table with Marble Top
Located in Queens, NY
French Empire-style (19th Century) mahogany and bronze guéridon table on triple swan leg platform with stretcher, gallery, and green marble top.
Bronze
Antique Empire Cylinder-Top Secretary with Bookcase in Burled Ash
Located in INTERLAKEN, NY
An exceptional Empire secretary bookcase in fine burl ash wood. Denmark or North Germany, circa 1800. The bookcase features a tiered bonnet w...
Ash, Burl
Antique French Empire Side Table, Mahogany & Marble, Circa 1820
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A round, antique French Empire side table made of hand crafted shellac polished, partly veneered Honduran Mahogany in good condition. The detailed small center table is composed with a black marble top, standing on three arched legs, supported by a wooden base, resisting on three round feet. The Parisian table is enhanced by detailed gilded wood carvings...
Marble
French Empire Console Table of Flame Mahogany with Marble Top
Located in Austin, TX
A fine French Empire console table of fine proportions, featuring a rectangular figured marble top, set upon a frieze of flame mahogany with one long hidden drawer over a base with t...
Marble
Mirrored and gilt wood console by Deknudt Belgium, 1970s
Located in Leuven, Vlaams Gewest
Hollywood regency style console by Belgian company Lusterie Deknudt with a gilt wood frame and a mirrored top. Elegant piedce of furniture for your hall or living room,... Dimensi...
Wood
French 19th century Empire st. Mahogany and Ormolu center table
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
An impressive and most handsome French 19th century Empire st. Mahogany and Ormolu center table. This exceptional table is raised by solid Mahogany bun feet with concealed interior B...
Ormolu
19th C Empire Ebonised Round Table with Brass Figural Mounts
Located in Troy, MI
Found in France, this two tier round table has strong empire / neoclassic style elements. We had the table professionally ebonised in England an...
Bronze
19th Century circular birch tilting occasional table
Located in Debenham, Suffolk
19th century circular birch tilting occasional table circa 1890. Good quality practical table for multiple uses around the home. Circular top veneered with a tiger birch timber. T...
Birch
19th C. French Empire Style Walnut Bouillotte Table with Black Fossil Marble Top
Located in Dallas, TX
This antique French bouillotte table was crafted circa 1870 in the Empire style and features a rich walnut cylindrical body topped with a round fossil black marble surface. The marbl...
Marble