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Empire Tables

EMPIRE STYLE

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.

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Style: Empire
Scandinavian Veneered Biedermeier Writing Desk with Lyres
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
A small mahogany and walnut veneered table or writing desk with brass holders in the lyres formed sides. The top is provided with inlaid green leather; the drawers have divided small...
Category

Early 1800s Scandinavian Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

Palatial French 19th Century Empire Style Giltwood Carved Eagles Center Table
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A Very Fine and Palatial French 19th Century Empire Style Giltwood Carved Figural Center Table with Figures of Winged Eagles and Wreaths, the center medallion with a figure of a bull and and raised on lion paws over a sphere, fitted with a veined verde d'alps marble top (Marble top is recent and not the original - Gilding restored with 23.5 cart...
Category

1880s French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Marble

ebonized 19th Century Mahogany Round Center Empire Table with Marble Top
Located in Troy, MI
Found in France, this circa 1840s mahogany empire center table has a new, professionally applied ebonised finish. Gray and white streaked round marble top with a brass trimmed trefoi...
Category

Mid-19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Marble, Brass

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 has foxing and is framed with beautiful mahogany...
Category

19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Mahogany

19th Century Swedish antique rustic genuine Empire table country original paint
Located in Boden, SE
Early 19th Century Swedish antique Rustic Empire Provincial table from Skellefteå Västerbotten,Northern Sweden. The table is scraped by hand to its well preserved original color. The...
Category

Mid-19th Century Swedish Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Pine

Late Empire Light Green Painted Metal Tray Table, Denmark
Located in Kastrup, DK
Late Empire side table / lamp table with a metal tray featuring a painted brass rim, placed on a later collapsible stand. The tray dates from around 1820–30, while the stand was mad...
Category

Early 19th Century Danish Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Metal

Black Dining Table Eco-shagreen top and brass legs handcrafted by Cupioli
Located in Rimini, IT
Black Dining Table Eco-shagreen top and brass legs Handcrafted by Cupioli. Dining Table black scagliola shagreen top casted brass legs handmade in Italy This is a sophisticated dini...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Italian Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

French Empire Mahogany Writing Desk
Located in LOS ANGELES, CA
Mahogany construction with rectangular leather writing surface with gilt brass medallion pulls. Back has gilt metal chariot and horse plaque. Top sits on ...
Category

Late 19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

French Empire Console Table of Flame Mahogany with Marble Top
Located in Austin, TX
A handsome French Empire console table of fine proportions, featuring a rectangular figured marble top, set upon a frieze of flame mahogany with one long drawer, the drawer with bras...
Category

19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Marble, Metal, Brass

Swedish Empire Octagonal Drop-Leaf Light Blue Painted Table
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
Swedish Empire octagonal blue painted tilt-top pedestal end table with claw and ball feet with rotating table top. Please note that this table is located in Halmstad, Sweden.  
Category

Early 19th Century Swedish Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Mahogany

Empire Sewing Table, Austria Circa 1810
Located in New York, NY
Empire sewing table with socketed saber legs and a basket tray, adorned with an oval frame featuring fire-gilded fittings. The table includes a lockable drawer with diamond-shaped fi...
Category

1810s Austrian Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

Corner Console Table, France 1800, Mahogany
Located in Belmont, MA
This elegant little Empire corner console table is embellished with mahogany veneer and pretty brass decorations. It is in very good, professio...
Category

Early 1800s French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

19th Century Berlin Oval Plate Table on Carved Foot Dining Table Mahogany German
Located in Epfach, DE
19th Century Berlin Oval Plate Table on Carved Foot A magnificent and rare 19th-century dining table, crafted in Berlin, featuring a solid mahogany oval tabletop supported by a rema...
Category

Early 19th Century German Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Mahogany

French Empire Bronze and Mahogany Vanity
Located in Queens, NY
French Empire (19th Century) mahogany vanity / dressing table with gilt bronze trim and swan supports on legs with a rectangular form mirror attached by a Pair of 3 arm candelabra.
Category

19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Ormolu

19th Century Italian Empire Game Table
Located in Atlanta, GA
19th Century excellent quality Italian Empire rent or games table of mahogany having a beautifully grained top with beveled edge. The table’s frieze holds four working drawers separa...
Category

19th Century Italian Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Mahogany, Giltwood

Neoclassical Empire Style Ormolu and Lapis Lazuli Table
Located in London, GB
Neoclassical Empire style ormolu and lapis lazuli table with patinated bronze mounts, French, 20th century Dimensions: Height 74cm, diameter 100cm Finely wrought in the French N...
Category

20th Century French Empire Tables

Materials

Lapis Lazuli, Bronze, Ormolu

Wood and Bronzes Empire Console Table with Marble Top Antique Mirror back
Located in IT
Empire console in wood, antique mirror and original gilded bronzes. The top pf the table is in marble. Conservative restoration of the wooden part. Size 60x137 xh90 cm
Category

Early 19th Century European Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Marble

French Empire Walnut Tray Top Table with Drawers, Doric Columns and Bottom Shelf
Located in Atlanta, GA
This French Empire walnut side table features a rectangular tray top over two thin drawers, one in the front and one in the back. To maintain a harmonious symmetry, the artist has in...
Category

Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass, Bronze

French Mahogany Desk, circa 1850
Located in Los Angeles, CA
The rectangular top inset with a beige tooled leather writing surface and slide outs on both ends. Above five drawers, the reverse side with dummy drawers raised on columnar legs wit...
Category

19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

19th Century French Mahogany Vanity Table with Swan's Heads in Empire Style
Located in Sofia, BG
French hand carved mahogany vanity table with black marble top. There is an original crystal oval mirror on the top part surrounded by two asymme...
Category

Mid-19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Marble

Spectacular Temple Guardian Antique Empire Style Table Birdseye Maple Veneer
Located in Berlin, DE
Spectacular Temple Guardian Empire style table Root on solid beechwood. A classical table with three monumental, fully ...
Category

20th Century French Empire Tables

Materials

Birdseye Maple

20th Century, French Desk or Bureau Plat with Lions in the Antique Empire Style
Located in Berlin, DE
Bird's-eye maple wood on massive beech wood, partially carved and framed. The pedestal is arched on profile shaped washers. Above the four large winged, polygonal standing heads. Three-bar frame, brass-framed, protruding rectangular worktop with historically three-section, gold-embossed leather plate...
Category

20th Century French Empire Tables

Materials

Wood

Pair of “return from Egypt” torch holders , attributed to Agostino Fantastici
Located in Walkertshofen, BY
Pair of Egyptian style Torchères with hermes and female busts on the stems, on flared griffon feet, attributed to Agostino Fantastici. The plates are supported by finely worked palmettes. Mahogany, partly black lacquered and gilded. Attr. Agostino Fantastici, Siena circa 1820 Born in 1782 to Bernardino and Margherita Boddi. He learned his first notions of architecture from his father, a professor of mathematics at the University of Siena and a hydraulic engineer. He trained first in Siena, then in Rome, and was active both during the French occupation and, above all, during the Restoration period. His work was very wide-ranging and included numerous projects, mainly in Senegal. The first years of activity included the prison in the former convent of Santa Marta (1811), the conversion of the convent of Sant'Agostino to the Liceo (1811), the church of San Salvatore (1812-1832), work on Palazzo Griffoli in Lucignano (1815-1818), the new tribune for the church of the Madonna (1812-1832) ; the new tribune for the church of the bishopric of Santa Maria della Scala (1815-1818); the Duomo of Montalcino (1817-1832), his masterpiece as a sacred building, and the façade of the Duomo of Colle di Val d'Elsa; the portico and scaffolding of the Council of Tolome in Sant'Agostino (1818, with Francesco Paccagnini). In Siena he also worked at the Teatro dei Rinnovati (1832), the Teatro dei Rozzi and the Duomo, as well as creating ponti, dighe, steccati and pescaie ; in the fifth century of the Ottocento, he worked on the church of San Giuseppe, where a new chapel was created, on the church of San Leonardo, on the altar of the church of Saints Peter and Paul, on the chapel of the Holy Sepulchre and on the slates of the church of Santa Maria in Provenzano, and on the church of San Pietro alla Magione. Among his works of residential architecture, he designed the façade of Palazzo Pozzesi (1823), the refurbishment of Palazzo Puccioni, Palazzo Staderini, Palazzo Brancadori (1828) and the Borghesi Casino (1825), the gardens of Villa di Scorgiano and Casa Malavolti, the extension and interior stage of Villa Spannocchi, Villa Il Pavone...
Category

19th Century Italian Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Wood, Mahogany

Antique coffee table container style imperio '900 Italy
Located in Cantù, IT
Imperial style antique container coffee table '900 Italy - Private Collection Domenico Rugiano
Category

20th Century Italian Empire Tables

Materials

Wood

Antique Decorative Swedish Cast Iron Garden Table
Located in Kastrup, DK
Decorative Swedish cast iron garden table. C 1860-1880 Painted leg formed as griffins. Made in decorative style and high quality. "The griffin is a ...
Category

19th Century Swedish Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Iron

Pair of French Empire Demilune Flip-Top Consoles by Ira Yeager
Located in Rio Vista, CA
Opulent pair of 19th century French empire demi-lune console tables or round dining tables with a flip top that has been faux-marble lacquered on top by artist Ira Yeager (American 1...
Category

19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

Custom Columned Solid Mahogany Library Table or Dining Table Made to Order
Located in Chicago, IL
Chunky and substantial describe this solid mahogany Trestle Table pretty well. Fashioned as an Ebonized Library Table, this Table could just as easily work as a foyer, homework, or D...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary American Empire Tables

Materials

Mahogany

Early 19th Century French Empire Large Neoclassical Walnut Console Table
Located in Berlin, DE
Early 19th century French Empire Large Neoclassical Walnut Console Table An elegant Empire period console table with a with marble top above a frieze d...
Category

1810s French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Carrara Marble, Bronze

Empire Style Console Table
Located in WEST PALM BEACH, FL
This is a very sophisticated Empire style console table, the ebonized plank top, over an ebonized wall centered with a carved parcel gilt la...
Category

19th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Ebony, Satinwood

Custom-Made Columned Solid Mahogany Library or Dining Table in Any Dimension
Located in Chicago, IL
Chunky and substantial describe this ebonized solid mahogany trestle table pretty well. Fashioned as a library table, this table could just as easily work as a foyer, homework, or di...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary American Empire Tables

Materials

Mahogany

Transforming Table by Martin-Guillaume Biennais, Consulat Period, France circa 1
By Martin Guillaume Biennais
Located in New York, NY
Transformation table, on high square pointed legs with brass sabots and curved table top including intermediate shelf with gilded gallery rail. The middle part of the table top can b...
Category

Early 1800s French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

Swedish Empire Center Table
Located in Essex, MA
Circular top with wood edge surrounding a geometric mosaic of hard stones raised on a triangular tapered column and tripartite base with gilded scroll feet. From the estate of Willia...
Category

1820s Swedish Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Marble

Ebonised French Table
Located in Houston, TX
Ebonised French Gueridon with Fossil marble top on 3 oblong bun feet. Metal detail on each of the three columns along the top and the bottom.
Category

Early 20th Century European Empire Tables

Materials

Marble

Antique Empire Sewing Table, Paris, circa 1810
Located in Berlin, DE
Solid oak, Cuba mahogany veneer. Fire-gilt fittings. Hinged cover plate with intermediate compartments. Slip-in drawer on four full columns with four fire-gilded capitals and bases.
Category

1810s French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Brass

Antique Empire Table with Flaps and Marquetry in Birch Wood from 1840s
Located in Lejre, DK
The Empire dining table, an antique piece featuring intricate intarsia work, crafted from birch wood and originating from Denmark in 1840, is a remarkable testament to the craftsmans...
Category

1840s Danish Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Birch

Empire Style Table, 19th Century
Located in Madrid, ES
Auxiliary table Empire style, with structure in wood in its color, ornamental applications in bronze and onyx bronze. Of circular plan, it rises on four legs in the form of a column,...
Category

19th Century European Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Bronze

18th Century Consult - Empire Style Epoque Table
Located in Scottsdale, AZ
18th Century Consult - Empire Style Epoque Table Beautiful piece purchased in France. Age appropriate wear, see detailed photos or message us with questions.
Category

18th Century French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Marble

Patinated and Dore Bronze Empire/Neo-Grec French Side Table, Att. F. Barbedienne
Located in New York, NY
A Beautifully Designed Small Patinated and Dore Bronze French Side Table, Attributed to F. Barbedienne, the Magnificent French Metalworker and Manufacturer. This beautifully cast an...
Category

1880s French Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Marble, Bronze

Small Restored Empire Era Table, Made in 1810s Austria, Ash
Located in Brandys nad Labem, Středočeský kraj
Austrian Empire small table Period: 1810-1819 Material: Ash.
Category

1810s Austrian Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Mahogany, Lacquer

19th Century Italian Table of Mahogany and Painted Architectural Scenes of Rome
Located in London, GB
Constructed in a good flame-veneer mahogany, with gilt metal mounts; rising from a tripartite incurved base mounted on castors, issuing three entasis form cylindrical columns, gilt m...
Category

19th Century Italian Antique Empire Tables

Materials

Mahogany, Watercolor

Empire tables for sale on 1stDibs.

Find a broad range of unique Empire tables for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 19th Century, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage tables created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include tables and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with marble, stone and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Empire tables made in a specific country, there are Europe, Scandinavia, and Denmark pieces for sale on 1stDibs. It’s true that these talented designers have at times inspired knockoffs, but our experienced specialists have partnered with only top vetted sellers to offer authentic pieces that come with a buyer protection guarantee. Prices for tables differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $1,299 and tops out at $57,850 while the average work can sell for $4,993.

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