Biedermeier Gueridon
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.
19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Wood
Mid-19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Fruitwood
Early 20th Century Russian Biedermeier Gueridon
Wood, Birch
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut, Wood
19th Century Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Cherry
1940s Swedish Vintage Biedermeier Gueridon
Beech, Elm
19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Giltwood, Walnut
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut
20th Century American Biedermeier Gueridon
Marble
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Iron
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Wood
1830s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Marble
1750s Italian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut
20th Century Italian Biedermeier Gueridon
Marble, Gold Leaf, Iron
19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Marble
Early 20th Century French Biedermeier Gueridon
Satinwood, Walnut, Mahogany, Burl
19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Wood
19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Marble
20th Century Spanish Biedermeier Gueridon
Iron, Wrought Iron
1890s French Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut
20th Century Spanish Biedermeier Gueridon
Alabaster, Brass
19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Marble, Brass
Early 19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Pine
1890s French Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Marble, Brass
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Cherry
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Biedermeier Gueridon
Maple
Late 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Wood
Mid-20th Century Austrian Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut
1820s German Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Metal
1820s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Metal, Brass
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut
Early 19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Brass
Late 19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Brass
1840s German Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut
1890s German Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Walnut, Burl
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Gueridon
Wood