Classical Greek Furniture
CLASSICAL GREEK STYLE
There is rare surviving furniture from ancient Greece, yet this classical style has informed design for centuries. Interiors of houses in antiquity were minimal, with much of a room’s color coming from frescoes on the walls and mosaics on the floors. Classical Greek furniture was sparing but finely crafted and influenced by Egyptian furniture design through Mediterranean trade.
Furnishings of the period were usually made from local wood like cypress, cedar, oak and willow from ancient Greece’s plentiful forests, although some pieces were carved from marble, such as a 300–200 B.C. throne with lion legs and a curved back now at the Getty Villa. Comfort and clean lines characterized designs during the Classical era, the symmetry and thoughtful proportions reflecting the architecture of Greek temples.
Some pieces of ancient Greek furniture were simple, rectangular platforms like the klinē, a multipurpose ancestor of today’s couches or daybeds that held cushions stuffed with wool, dry grass or down. These structures were used for both sleeping and dining, which wealthy Greeks did while reclining. At night, oil lamps illuminated rooms that frequently surrounded a garden courtyard.
Most of what scholars have learned about Greek furniture design owes to its representations in art like vases and stelae. The portable diphros stool, with its backless design and four turned legs, was one of the more common types of seating in daily Greek life — it appears as such for the gods on the Parthenon frieze. Stools without backs have been found in early Roman tombs, while benches were also common Greek seating furniture created for use in theaters. In houses of the Hellenistic period, benches seemingly functioned as tables, too.
Some designs evolved through adaptations by the Romans, including the klismos chair. After prominent archaeological excavations at Pompeii and Herculaneum, the klismos chair — with its four saber legs and the elegant curves that define its back — was a source of inspiration for aesthetics in eras ranging from 18th-century neoclassicism to 20th-century Art Deco.
Find a collection of Classical Greek decorative objects, wall decorations and building and garden elements on 1stDibs.
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Style: Classical Greek
Large Classical Semi Nude Bronze Figures Mounted on Marble Pedestal, circa 1880
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A very impressive classical 19th century bronze statue of god like semi-nude figures reaching for the sky, with a hound at their feet.
Mounted on an impressive rouge marble pedestal...
Category
19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Marble, Bronze
$65,802 Sale Price
20% Off
19th Century Bronze Eros, by Aug. Moreau
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A very good quality 19th century bronze statue of Eros with gilded highlights.
By Aug. Moreau
In Greek mythology, Eros Ancient Greek: is the Greek god of love and sex
Auguste Moreau, 1834-1917 the third son of sculptor and painter Jean Baptiste Moreau, Auguste initiated himself to sculpture along with his older brother...
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Bronze
Large 19th Century Classical Bronze statue of Amalthea
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A very good quality large 19th century bronze statue of a semi nude female of Amalthea in Marie Antoinette’s dairy. The original is marble from 1787..
There were different traditions regarding Amaltheia.[3] Amaltheia is sometimes represented as the goat who nurtured the infant-god in a cave in Cretan Mount Aigaion ("Goat Mountain"),[4] sometimes as a goat-tending nymph[5] of uncertain parentage (the daughter of Oceanus,[6] Helios,[7] Haemonius,[8] or—according to Lactantius—Melisseus[9]).[10] The possession of multiple and uncertain mythological parents indicates wide worship of a deity in many cultures having varying local traditions. Other names, like Adrasteia, Ide, the nymph of Mount Ida...
Category
19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Bronze
Elkington Antique Silver Plated Charger by Morel-Ladeuil
Located in London, GB
The silver charger mounted on a velvet board, of circular form in the Neo-Grec manner, depicting a classical figural scene of a semi-clad maiden surrounded by three female attendants with an exotic colonnaded interior, within a florally decorated border with a Grotesque bust to the top and two dragons to the bottom, signed and dated to the lower left 'morel-ladeuil inv e fecit 1876' and to the lower right 'Elkington & Co.'
The importance of this Victorian period silver plated charger...
Category
Late 19th Century English Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Silver Plate
Jacques Louis KESSLER, Pair of Vases Engraved Using the Kessler Process
Located in SAINT-OUEN-SUR-SEINE, FR
This pair of vases, crafted in the 19th century, was made using a technique developed by engineer Jacques Louis Kessler in 1855 and patented in 1858.
The decoration of these two vases, made of double-layered crystal (blue on the outside and transparent on the inside), was achieved using Kessler’s engraving process. This innovative method utilized alkaline fluorides mixed with acids and a system of stencils, allowing for an immediate contrast between a bright, colored design and a matt background. The Baccarat crystal manufacturer later acquired exclusive rights to this patented process, which brought them widespread acclaim during the 1867 Paris Exhibition.
These baluster-shaped vases feature neo-Greek ornamentation, alternating between blue-toned designs and matt crystal. Their clean, elegant lines are accented by several ornamental blue crystal bands. The decoration is composed of three primary scenes: the first depicts two combatants. The second portrays a winged Victory holding a palm in one hand while crowning a resting warrior with laurel in the other; the warrior stands before her. The third depicts three figures: a woman playing the lyre for a king holding a long scepter, with a young ephebe standing behind him. The scenes are separated by depictions of weapon trophies. The iconography draws inspiration from scenes commonly found on ancient Greek vases, while emphasizing the fluidity of the figures’ movements and features. Each vase rests on a circular mount supported by four spheres, with one vase bearing the number “2” engraved under its base.
When Baccarat acquired the rights to Kessler’s technique, the company used it to create similar pieces, incorporating this innovative method into its repertoire. At the 1867 Paris Exhibition, Baccarat showcased a celestial blue crystal punch bowl and matching glasses engraved using this process; this set is now housed at the Corning Museum of Glass. The Galerie Marc Maison...
Category
Mid-19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Glass
antique intaglio engraved amber goblet depicting Proserpina and Jupiter c 1880
Located in Central England, GB
An exceptional intaglio engraved goblet with a view of the Greek god Pluto abducting Proserpina who was the daughter of the Greek god Jupiter.
This fabulous stemmed goblet is in my ...
Category
1880s British Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Glass
19th Century Bronzed Vase / Lamp of the Goddess Amphitrite
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A wonderfully impressive 19th century bronzed spelter vase depicting the Ancient Greek sea goddess amphitrite with a sea urchin and cherubs around her.
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Spelter
Unique Decorative Art Tile, Roger Capron, Italy c. 1980
By Roger Capron
Located in St Ouen, FR
Unique decoration on earthenware made to order by the Artist for the famous Italian decorative ceramics firm Marazzi.
An ode to love and wine carried by a shepherdess treated in a ve...
Category
1980s Italian Vintage Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Earthenware
Bust of Carrera Marble and Honey Onyx
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Carrera Marble and Honey Onyx Bust of Clasical Roman. 20th century with impressive detail. Very handsome features with stunning craftsmanship.
PROVENANCE: R...
Category
20th Century European Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Onyx, Marble
Classical Bronze maiden resting on a rock, 19th century
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A good quality late 19th century French patinated bronze statue of a classical young maiden leaning on a rock.
Signed to the base.
Batch 75 62422. YNYZ
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Bronze
After the Antique, Silenus and the Infant Bacchus a Serpentine Group
Located in Montreal, QC
AFTER PRAXITELES Greek c.400-330BCE
The original of this imposing group, was rescued from obscurity in the 16th century and became the basis of numerous copies in bronze, marble and ...
Category
Mid-19th Century Italian Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Serpentine
Pair of Bonze Bas Relief of Greek God and Goddess
Located in Washington, DC
A Pair of Bronze Bas Relief of Greek God and Goddess
Category
19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Bronze
Pair of Classical Italian Grey Marble Vases After the Famous Medici Vase
Located in London, GB
Pair of classical Italian grey marble vases after the famous Medici vase
Italian, 19th Century
Measures: Height 51cm, width 26cm, depth 25cm
These exceptional vases are carved from dark greenish marble in a classical style. Each vase is modelled as an ancient Greek bell krater...
Category
19th Century Italian Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Marble
Unique Decorative Art Tile, Roger Capron, Italy c. 1980
By Roger Capron
Located in St Ouen, FR
Unique decoration on earthenware made to order by the Artist for the famous Italian decorative ceramics firm Marazzi.
An ode to love and wine carried by a muse treated in a very soft...
Category
1980s Italian Vintage Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Earthenware
Classical French 19th century fine opaque glass vase circa 1890
Located in Central England, GB
Classical French 19th Century Vase
A stylish mid 19th century French vase with a classical design in fine opaque glass with boarders of "duck...
Category
19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Glass
Large Pair of Early 19th Century Gilded Ormolu Candelabra
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A very impressive and fine quality pair of early 19th century gilded ormolu 13 branch candelabra, each with wonderful scrolling foliate decoration, supported by three classical maide...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Ormolu
Pair Ormolu and Bronze Candelabra, Early 19th Century
Located in Brighton, Sussex
A pair of 18th century style gilded ormolu and patinated bronze three branch candelabra, each with a classical kneeling putti supporting scrolling foliate candelabra with urn like sc...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Bronze, Ormolu
Minoan Style Painted Canvas by Heather Wilson
Located in Asheville, NC
Painted canvas floor cloth or wall hanging featuring Minoan style maidens carrying vessels of olive oil or wine as an offering to the Gods who's faces appe...
Category
Late 20th Century North American Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Canvas
Neoclassical Style Gilt Bronze, Enamel and Lapis Lazuli Mantel Clock
Located in London, GB
This Grecian style mantel clock was crafted at the end of the 19th century and retailed by the acclaimed Maison Marnyhac, which was based on the Rue de la Paix in Paris.
Founded ...
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Lapis Lazuli, Bronze, Enamel
Bronze Sculptured Athenian Scribe on Variegated Agate Pen Tray
Located in Asheville, NC
Bronze sculpted figure Athena, Goddess of Wisdom, is seated with two scrolls, one in hand the other placed upon nearby column, is classically dressed in robe with empire bow and hair...
Category
20th Century Italian Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Bronze
Ceramic Sculptural Ring by Andrea Salvatori Contemporary 21st Century, Art Jewel
Located in London, GB
"Ring Grace", unique piece, 2017 glazed earthenware
A Ring Thing collection
A small chair, a miniature moon, a Philipp Stark's squeezer or the anatomical details of Michelangelo’...
Category
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Classical Greek Furniture
Materials
Ceramic, Earthenware
Classical Greek furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a broad range of unique Classical Greek furniture for sale on 1stDibs. Many of these items were first offered in the 21st Century and Contemporary, but contemporary artisans have continued to produce works inspired by this style. If you’re looking to add vintage furniture created in this style to your space, the works available on 1stDibs include decorative objects, building and garden elements, lighting and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with stone, marble and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Classical Greek furniture made in a specific country, there are Europe, Asia, and West Asia pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original furniture, popular names associated with this style include LAGU, Cathryn Shilling, Sir William Hamilton, and Maitland Smith. 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 furniture differ depending upon multiple factors, including designer, materials, construction methods, condition and provenance. On 1stDibs, the price for these items starts at $30 and tops out at $289,700 while the average work can sell for $1,855.
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Burled Walnut Desk
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Butter Table
Cabinet Dowel
Cabinets With Metal Inlay
Cameo Glass Bowl
Campaign Chest 1970
Campaign Chest Camphor
Canopic Jars
Canton Chinese Bowl
Cardinal Sculpture
Carrera Marble Dining Table