Biedermeier Side Chairs
The authentic Biedermeier furniture on 1stDibs is representative of the first modern European decorative style not dictated by the tastes of the aristocracy. Following the Napoleonic wars, a growing, wealthy urban middle class in the German-speaking states of Central Europe began to demand rights and privileges once granted only to nobles. To avoid trouble, the upwardly striving confined their political discussions to one another’s homes. And so the salon was born.
Cabinetmakers in cities such as Vienna, Berlin and Mainz began to offer goods that reflected the tastes and needs of the new class. The makers of Biedermeier chairs, tables and other furniture used little or no gilding, silver hardware or other lavish ornament. Ebonized trims are common on Biedermeier cabinetry, and neoclassical elements — lyre-shaped chair splats, carved scrollwork, table supports shaped like Greek columns. But the strongest aesthetic statement came from the wood — richly-grained, honey-colored, often book-matched veneers of walnut and fruitwood.
There are two iconic Biedermeier furniture forms, both made to outfit rooms designed for conversation. One is the sofa, deeply upholstered with a strong, architectural wooden frame. The second is the circular pedestal table, which stood at the center of the room, offering a surface on which to place coffee and cake services; or to roll out a map, or sketch out ideas on paper.
“Biedermeier” was originally a derogatory term — it derives from the pen names of two German magazine writers who mocked bourgeois manners. Looking at the elegant and refined antique, new and vintage Biedermeier furniture offered on 1stDibs, that is now an amusing irony.
1810s German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fruitwood
1820s Swiss Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Walnut
Early 1900s European Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Birch
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Ash
Early 20th Century Austrian Biedermeier Side Chairs
Chenille, Upholstery, Burl
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Cherry
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Late 20th Century American Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Mahogany
Early 19th Century Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
20th Century Unknown Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fabric, Upholstery, Burl, Wood
1820s Danish Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Suede, Beech, Mahogany
1880s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fabric, Elm
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Walnut
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fabric, Mahogany, Upholstery, Cotton
20th Century Biedermeier Side Chairs
Lacquer, Fabric, Upholstery, Wood
19th Century Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fruitwood, Walnut, Fabric, Upholstery
19th Century Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Wood, Fabric, Upholstery
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Cherry, Walnut
1830s Danish Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Birch
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Bouclé, Cherry
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Cherry, Walnut
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fabric, Cherry, Paint
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Cherry
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fabric, Velvet, Mahogany
1820s French Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Paint, Cherry
Late 20th Century Australian Biedermeier Side Chairs
Mahogany
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Velvet, Walnut
Mid-20th Century European Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fabric, Mahogany
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Cherry
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Cherry
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fruitwood
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Wood
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Cherry
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Pearwood
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Pearwood
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Mahogany, Ebony
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Walnut, Upholstery
1820s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Cherry
Early 19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Cherry, Lacquer
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Velvet, Ebony, Maple, Walnut, Paint
19th Century Czech Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Yew
Early 19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Fabric, Wood, Walnut
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Cherry
Early 20th Century Belgian Biedermeier Side Chairs
Upholstery, Birch
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Side Chairs
Cherry, Ebony