Empire Furniture
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
Empire Clock, "The Astronomy Lesson", early 19th century
Located in Paris, FR
A mercury gilt bronze clock depicting two young women dressed in antique style sitting in Etruscan-style shepherdesses on either side of a draped table with claw feet, studying a map...
Category
Early 1800s French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze
Pair of Empire Style Parcel Gilt Stools
Located in El Monte, CA
A magnificent pair of Empire-style parcel-gilt stools that exude timeless elegance. Each stool features a carved wooden frame with a cream and gilt finish showcasing the luxuriousnes...
Category
20th Century French Empire Furniture
Materials
Wood
$2,200 / set
A Rare Brass Bouillotte Triple Branch Table Lamp With Height Adjustable Shade
Located in Reading, Berkshire
A Rare Brass Bouillotte Triple Branch Table Lamp With An Adjustable Height Shade.
Complete with rare brass accessories such as a candle snuffer and candle wick cutter...
Category
19th Century British Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Brass
$3,335 Sale Price
61% Off
19th Century Empire Bronze Sconces
Located in Paris, FR
Pair of gilt and patinated bronze sconces from embellished with winged Victories. Each sconce features four candlestick branches that terminate in lions heads and are intricately scu...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze
$16,627 / set
Neoclassical Empire Oval Silver Hand Carved Wooden Mirror, Spain, 1970
Located in Madrid, ES
Neoclassical Empire handcrafted mirror. Oval shaped hand carved wooden structure with silver foil finish.
Category
1970s Spanish Vintage Empire Furniture
Materials
Silver Leaf
Fine Old Paris Porcelain Coffee Can and
En Grisaille
, French circa 1810
By Paris Studio
Located in Lincoln, Lincolnshire
This is a very beautiful porcelain coffee can made by a French Old - Paris maker, dating to the early 19th century, circa 1810.
The very fine Paris Porcelain coffee...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Porcelain
Danish Rectangular Empire Burl Wood Art Frame
Located in Haddonfield, NJ
Impressive Danish burl wood art frame found in a market in Denmark. Perfect piece for that special oil painting or watercolor. The frame has wonderful patina throughout and would loo...
Category
Late 19th Century Danish Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Wood, Burl
Empire Inkwell in Mahogany and Walnut with Gilt Bronze Mounts, circa 1820
Located in Knivsta, SE
Empire Inkwell in Mahogany and Ebonized Walnut with Gilt Bronze Mounts, circa 1820
A rare and finely crafted Empire inkwell, dating from around the 1820s. Made of richly grained ma...
Category
1820s French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze
French 19th Century Empire St. Ormolu And Baccarat Crystal Chandelier
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A beautiful and very high quality French 19th century Empire st. ormolu and Baccarat crystal chandelier. The twelve arm sixteen light chandelier is centered by a striking solid cryst...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Crystal, Ormolu
Pair of Empire Style Palatial Torchieres
Located in Atlanta, GA
Pair of Empire style palatial composite torchieres with fluted column over acanthus leaf and urn form details, and rising on paw feet. Continental, second half 20th century.
Dimens...
Category
20th Century French Empire Furniture
Materials
Composition
20th Century Antique Classizim Style Empire Swan Chaise Lounge Birdseye Maple
Located in Berlin, DE
Maple roots on solid beechwood, partially ebonized and gilded.
Finely carved swans, feet carved with paws.
Very high quality fabric.
Category
20th Century English Empire Furniture
Materials
Wood
Antique Lithograph of a Drawing Signed by Jean Cocteau - 2Y236
Located in Bordeaux, FR
Condition: Fair
Comments: The lithograph is in good condition, but the glass protecting it needs to be replaced due to multiple scratches. There is a small stain on the subject in th...
Category
20th Century French Empire Furniture
Materials
Paper
$454 Sale Price
55% Off
Contemporary Makonde Style Hand Carved Wooden Sculpture on a Base
Located in Queens, NY
Contemporary Makonde Style Hand Carved with filigree design cylindrical wooden cculpture on a square shaped base
Category
20th Century Unknown Empire Furniture
French Empire Bronze Napoleon Bust
Located in Queens, NY
French Empire style small bronze bust of Napoleon on bronze square shaped pedestal base (signed DUBRAND) (19th Cent.)
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze
Danish Empire Set of 4 Small Chairs, Elm Wood with Hand Embroidered Seats 1850s
Located in Silkeborg, Silkeborg
Set of four antique danish empire or Biedermeier style dining chairs handmade by a skilled danish master carpenter in Denmark the middel of the 19th.
The frame is made of elm wood, ...
Category
1850s Danish Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Wool, Wood, Elm
Antique American Empire Arched Mahogany Wood Frame Looking Glass Wall Mirror
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Please message us with your zip code to request a more reasonable domestic U.S. shipping quote.
Antique American Empire Arched Deep Mahogany Wood Frame Looking Glass Wall Mirror wit...
Category
Late 19th Century Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Glass, Mahogany
French Empire Bronze Marble Figural Clock, c. 1830
Located in Astoria, NY
French Empire Patinated and Gilt Bronze Verde Antico Marble Figural Clock, circa 1830, the clock surmounted with seated figures of Apollo and Diana, each holding a torch, the clock w...
Category
1830s French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Marble, Bronze
Pair of 19th Century Empire Console Tables
Located in Gloucestershire, GB
A large pair of 19th Century Empire console tables with green marble tops and large scale ormolu mounts.
With symmetrical eagle motifs on the legs and in the bottom centre, the style...
Category
Late 19th Century Unknown Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Marble
$30,433 / set
Early 19th Century Berlin Mahogany Armoire
Located in London, by appointment only
Germany, circa 1825.
A Berlin mahogany display cabinet having a stepped pediment inlaid with boxwood stringing above partially glazed doors divided...
Category
Early 19th Century German Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Glass, Mahogany
Antique French Porcelain Pitcher Hand Painted Empire Period, Circa 1815
Located in Katonah, NY
Made in the Napoleonic period, this exquisite French porcelain pitcher was hand-painted
in the Empire style.
It boasts classical and rococ...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Porcelain
Rare French Empire Chair - From the Collection of Ann
Gordon Getty
Located in Scottsdale, AZ
Rare, French Regency Chair owned by Ann and Gordon Getty, an original antique prototype (dated 1810) that legendary craftsman and antique dealer ...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Silk, Upholstery, Fruitwood
Pair of Grainger Worcester Covered Urns
Located in Montreal, QC
This pair of simulated marble covered urns are amphora-shaped, raised on gilt hoof feet on a stepped trefoil base, each domed cover has a lobed fini...
Category
Late 19th Century English Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Porcelain
$960 Sale Price / set
20% Off
Antique Empire Silver Lidded Jug With Cockerel, Germany, Circa 1810
Located in Vienna, AT
Empire silver lidded jug with a stepped, funnel-shaped foot on a square plinth, a large fluted ring decorated with acanthus leaves, in which the smooth, raised bulbous vessel rests, ...
Category
1810s German Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Silver
Antique 19th/Early 20th Century Commemorative Bronze Plaque - Gadzarts - 2Y183
Located in Bordeaux, FR
This exceptional antique bronze plaque, dating from the 19th century or early 20th century, is a rare and significant piece associated with the ...
Category
20th Century French Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze
$275 Sale Price
60% Off
French Empire Centre Table Burr Walnut circa 1860
Located in Potters Bar, GB
French Empire style burr walnut centre table.
Circa 1860
Standing on swept legs with cast gilt Mouldings.
This table has 1 x Mahogany lined drawer.
The shaped top featuring high ...
Category
1860s Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Walnut
1820s Rare and Elegant Empire Walnut Sicilian Console
Located in Catania, Sicilia
An original conditions Walnut console hand-crafted in Sicily in 1820s. The elegance of saber feet it's typical of the Empire period as the gilded friezes...
Category
Early 19th Century Sicilian Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Walnut
Baker Furniture Neoclassical Burled Walnut Tea Table, Circa 1960s
Located in South Bend, IN
An exceptional Neoclassical or Empire style tea table or occasional side table
By Baker Furniture
USA, Circa 1960s
Gorgeous burled walnut, with ebonized and gold gilt column legs....
Category
1960s American Vintage Empire Furniture
Materials
Walnut, Giltwood, Burl
Empire period armchair in walnut, upholstery redone
Located in Saint-Ouen, FR
Empire period armchair in walnut, upholstery redone
2 small gaps at the top of the armrests,
which does not interfere with the stability of the chair
Category
1860s French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Tapestry, Walnut
Empire Chandelier
Located in Atlanta, GA
A Very Fine
Impressive Gilt Bronze
Patinated Bronze Chandelier in the Empire Taste featuring four eagles.
France, circa 1900.
Dimensions: Height 40" Diameter 27"
CW5660
Category
Early 1900s French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze
$11,150
French 19th century Empire st. flame Mahogany, Ormolu and Leather desk
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A wonderful and most elegant French 19th century Empire st. flame Mahogany, Ormolu and Leather desk. This exceptional desk is raised by eight Mahogany legs with superbly detailed Orm...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Ormolu
French Empire Style Gilt Bronze Wall Sconces Set by Gherardo Degli Albizzi
Located in Florence, Tuscany
This French Empire style gilt bronze wall sconce by Gherardo Degli Albizzi features the best quality hand-chiselled details.
The backplate of this sconce features a lacquered round ...
Category
2010s Italian Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze
2 brass and glass Peacock wall-sconces in Hollywood regency style
By OTHR
Located in Zemst, BE
2 wall sconces in brass and glass
Peacock form
Wonderful condition.
Original wiring, that's still ok: ready for use.
Place of origin: Spain
No manufacturer known
Period: mid 1970...
Category
Mid-20th Century Spanish Empire Furniture
Materials
Brass
Bronze and Sea-Green Marble Table Planter with Caryatids, Empire Style, 19thC
Located in Paris, FR
Gilded and patinated bronze planter mounted on a stepped sea-green marble base, with women in long tunics at the corners and a central amphora with swan-shaped handles. Like the colu...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Marble, Bronze
Italian Empire Style Chandelier with Bohemian Crystal
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This refined 1950s Italian Empire-style chandelier features a beautifully tapered basket design crafted in gilded brass and adorned with high-quality Bohemian crystal. The upper sect...
Category
20th Century Italian Empire Furniture
Materials
Crystal, Brass
Empire Period French Gilt Bronze Six Light Chandelier
Located in London, GB
Empire period French gilt bronze six light chandelier
French, c. 1810
Height 80cm, diameter 45cm
Made in France around 1810, at the time when the Empire style was in vogue, the chan...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze, Ormolu
19th Century French Empire Marble Top Bronze Ormolu Paw Feet Console Hall Table
Located in Philadelphia, PA
19th Century French Empire Marble Top Bronze Ormolu Paw Feet Console Hall Table. Finely cast bronze ormolu, paw feet, gold gilt accents, bronze inlay,...
Category
Mid-19th Century Unknown Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Marble, Bronze
Original antique Empire Sofa / canapé circa 1860-1870 Empire Room mahogany
Located in Berlin, DE
Original Empire sofa circa 1860-1870 from an Empire room.
Massive mahogany cast with Empire caryadites bronze.
Top condition.
Measurments:
width:140cm
Height: 100cm
Depht: 80cm.
Category
Mid-19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Mahogany
Assiette décorative Victoria Austria en porcelaine Bleu Cobalt fin 19ième siècle
Located in London, England
Assiette décorative Victoria Austria en porcelaine, embellie d'un magnifique motif mythologique réalisé à la main. Avec sa prédominance en bleu cobalt accentuée de détails en ou vér...
Category
Late 19th Century Austrian Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Gold Leaf
$87 Sale Price
50% Off
Pair of Antique French Empire Mahogany Carved Armchairs
Located in Swedesboro, NJ
Dimensions - H: 35 1/4 in W: 23 1/2 in D: 21 1/2 in SH: 17 1/4 in
A distinguished pair of antique French Empire mahogany carved armchairs, dating to the late 18th or early 19th cen...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Upholstery, Wood, Mahogany
Old Paris Porcelain Coffee Can
Saucer Duo hand painted, French circa 1800
By Paris Studio
Located in Lincoln, Lincolnshire
This is a very beautiful porcelain coffee can and saucer duo made by a French Old-Paris maker, dating to the very early 19th century, circa 1800.
The fine quality and very good / ex...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Porcelain
2 Antique French Sarregumines Majolica Snake Serpent Mantel Vase Urn 17"
Located in Dayton, OH
Pair of very large and impressive late 19th century Sarregumines majolica pottery vases - classical urn shape with coiled double headed snake / serpent handles, brown and white multi...
Category
Late 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Majolica
$6,800 Sale Price / set
20% Off
Pair of Empire-Style Neoclassical Gilt and Patinated Bronze Stands
Located in London, GB
A pair of Empire-style Neoclassical gilt and patinated bronze stands
French, 20th Century
42cm high x 31cm wide x 31 cm depth
Made from patinated bronze and gilt bronze in the French Empire style, with Neoclassical influences, these excellent stands were made in France in the 20th century. Placed upon four small gilt feet...
Category
20th Century French Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze, Ormolu
French Ormolu Table Clock, Bacchant Sitting On Wine Barrel, Paris, Around 1840
Located in Vienna, AT
Fire-gilded bronze table clock: a childlike bacchanal seated on a wine barrel under an arched vine arbour, holding grapes and a wine glass in his hands, on an oval base with an appli...
Category
1840s French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze
French Empire Candestick Empire Style, 19th Century
Located in Roma, IT
Ancient Empire Style Sterling Silver Candlestick.
Silver 800.
Very good condition.
Category
19th Century European Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Silver
French 19th Century Empire Style Ormolu and Granite Five-Arm Lamps
By Claude Galle
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
An exquisite true pair of French 19th century Empire st. ormolu and granite five arm lamps, after a model by Claude Galle. Each lamp is raised by a squar...
Category
19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Granite, Ormolu
Vintage 1974 Matchbox Sherman Tank by Lesney - Battle Kings Series - 2Y194
Located in Bordeaux, FR
This collectible piece from the 1974 Matchbox Battle Kings series features the iconic Sherman tank. A must-have for vintage toy enthusiasts or military memorabilia collectors, this t...
Category
1970s French Vintage Empire Furniture
Materials
Metal
$133 Sale Price
60% Off
Empire period ormolu and mahogany swans
heads stool
Located in London, GB
Empire period ormolu and mahogany swans' heads stool
French, Early 19th Century
Height 68cm, width 77cm, depth 39cm
This beautiful antique stool is a class...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Ormolu
Gilt Bronze and Crystal Basket Chandelier
By Baccarat
Located in Atlanta, GA
A very fine gilt bronze and crystal basket chandelier attributed to Baccarat. 15-light
France, circa 1910.
Dimensions: Height 5...
Category
1910s French Vintage Empire Furniture
Materials
Crystal, Bronze
Pair Of Mahogany Somnos/ Bedside Tables
Located in Brussels, Brussels
a fine pair of mahogany Empire-style bedside tables or end tables
cylindrical in shape, each opening with a door.
Very beautiful top with a strong molding, were we can find in it's c...
Category
20th Century French Empire Furniture
Materials
Mahogany
$2,197 / set
Estate Baccarat Empire Harcourt Pitcher
Located in New York, NY
Fine Baccarat Empire Harcourt cocktail/water pitcher.
The Empire Harcourt pattern is one of Baccarat's most sought after designs. A classic since 1841, it has graced the tables of n...
Category
20th Century French Empire Furniture
Materials
Crystal
19th Century Dressing table mirror in Empire style
Located in Delft, NL
19th Century Dressing table mirror in Empire style
A dressing table mirror with tiltable mirror, which is fixed to the side with 19th cent...
Category
19th Century Dutch Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Nutwood
Vintage 1950 Longwy Bagatelle Hand-Painted Floral Platter/Tray - 2Y216
Located in Bordeaux, FR
This exquisite vintage Longwy Bagatelle platter/tray from 1950 features a stunning hand-painted floral design, showcasing the timeless craftsmanship of the renowned Longwy ceramic ar...
Category
1950s French Vintage Empire Furniture
Materials
Ceramic
$260 Sale Price
70% Off
Set of 6 Chairs Gondola Wood Fabric Antique Seating 19th Century
Located in Palermo, IT
Set of six wooden chairs with open, wraparound backs. Sabre legs. Padded seat upholstered in damask fabric. 19th century. Please watch the video and photos carefully, thank you.
We...
Category
19th Century Italian Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Fabric, Wood
Vintage Renault Road Tractor Toy- 2Y41
Located in Bordeaux, FR
Introducing a classic piece of vintage machinery: this small Renault road tractor. This collectible toy tractor offers a glimpse into mid-20th-centur...
Category
20th Century French Empire Furniture
Materials
Metal
$127 Sale Price
75% Off
Early 19th Century Italian Empire Gilt Wood Antique Rectangula Wall Mirror
Located in Casale Monferrato, IT
We present this elegant Italian antique mirror dating back to the early 19th century, during the Empire period. An extremely refined mirror.
Made with a wooden frame finely decorate...
Category
Early 19th Century Italian Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Poplar
French Empire Style Gilt Bronze Chandelier by Gherardo Degli Albizzi
Located in Florence, Tuscany
This French Empire Style Gilt Bronze Chandelier by Gherardo Degli Albizzi chandelier features best...
Category
2010s Italian Empire Furniture
Materials
Bronze, Tin
Pair Warren Kessler Empire-style Cut crystal and Brass Duck Mounts Table lamps
Located in Germantown, MD
An exquisite Pair of Warren Kessler Empire-style Cut crystal and Brass Duck Mounts Table lamps with adjustable height harpers.
Measures: 9.5" in width, 6" ...
Category
Early 20th Century American Empire Furniture
Materials
Crystal, Rock Crystal
A Pair Of Early C20th Italian Giltwood
Toleware Wall Sconces
Located in London, GB
A Fine Pair of Italian Giltwood and Toleware Wall Sconces from the Early 20th Century in the Empire Style.
The sconces are adorned with delicate ...
Category
Early 20th Century Italian Empire Furniture
Materials
Metal
19th Century Empire Secrétaire à Abattant
Located in Casale Monferrato, IT
We present this elegant antique Italian Secretaire dating back to the early 19th century, Empire period. An extremely refined Secretaire.
Made of fine solid mahogany wood (accompani...
Category
19th Century Italian Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Marble
$3,306 Sale Price
44% Off
19th Century Black French Pair of Empire Pinewood Cabinets, Antique Sideboard
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
A black, antique French pair of cabinets made of hand crafted painted Pinewood, in good condition. The detailed commodes are supported by four short arched feet, consisting its origi...
Category
Early 19th Century French Antique Empire Furniture
Materials
Metal
Empire furniture for sale on 1stDibs.
Find a broad range of unique Empire 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 lighting, decorative objects, tables and other home furnishings, frequently crafted with metal, wood and other materials. If you’re shopping for used Empire furniture made in a specific country, there are Europe, France, and Italy pieces for sale on 1stDibs. While there are many designers and brands associated with original furniture, popular names associated with this style include Modenese Gastone, Europa Antiques, Baker Furniture Company, and Gherardo Degli Albizzi. 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 $56 and tops out at $955,603 while the average work can sell for $4,296.
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