Unusual Chandeliers
Vintage 1950s American Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Vintage 1950s Italian Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Vintage 1960s Italian Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Glass
Vintage 1930s Art Deco Chandeliers and Pendants
Chrome
Mid-20th Century Czech Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Brass
Late 20th Century American Industrial Chandeliers and Pendants
Chrome
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Aluminum, Copper
20th Century French Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze, Tôle
20th Century French Louis XVI Chandeliers and Pendants
Rock Crystal, Iron
21st Century and Contemporary Italian Chandeliers and Pendants
Glass
Vintage 1940s Hollywood Regency Chandeliers and Pendants
2010s Austrian Jugendstil Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Antique 1890s Baltic Baltic Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Bronze
Early 20th Century Chandeliers and Pendants
Rock Crystal, Bronze
Early 20th Century European Neoclassical Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Bronze
Vintage 1950s French French Provincial Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Metal
20th Century French Hollywood Regency Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Rock Crystal, Bronze
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Chrome
20th Century French Louis XVI Chandeliers and Pendants
Coral, Crystal, Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Neoclassical Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Empire Chandeliers and Pendants
Metal, Ormolu
Antique Late 19th Century American Renaissance Revival Chandeliers and P...
Bronze
Early 20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Iron
Antique Mid-19th Century French Empire Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze, Ormolu
Vintage 1950s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
20th Century Spanish Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Iron, Silver Leaf, Metal, Wrought Iron
Early 20th Century French Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze
Mid-20th Century Italian Chandeliers and Pendants
Metal
Vintage 1970s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Chrome
Vintage 1960s Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Metal
Antique Late 19th Century French Chandeliers and Pendants
Ormolu
Vintage 1950s Unknown Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Metal, Aluminum, Brass
Antique Late 19th Century French Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze, Enamel
Vintage 1970s Belgian Chandeliers and Pendants
Metal
Vintage 1950s Italian Chandeliers and Pendants
Antique Early 19th Century German Neoclassical Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Bronze
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Antique 19th Century French Chandeliers and Pendants
Alabaster, Bronze
Antique Mid-19th Century French Louis XVI Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze
Early 20th Century French Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Brass, Bronze
Antique Late 19th Century French Moorish Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze, Enamel
Vintage 1930s Italian Art Deco Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Chrome
Early 20th Century Italian Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Iron
Vintage 1930s French Chandeliers and Pendants
Bronze
20th Century Austrian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Crystal, Brass
Antique 19th Century British Victorian Chandeliers and Pendants
Ormolu
20th Century Austrian Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Cut Glass
Antique 1860s English Victorian Chandeliers and Pendants
Silver Plate
Early 20th Century French Gothic Revival Chandeliers and Pendants
Wrought Iron
20th Century French Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Rock Crystal, Bronze
Vintage 1950s French Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Glass, Wood
Antique 19th Century British Regency Chandeliers and Pendants
Ormolu
Mid-20th Century Italian Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Vintage 1960s American Mid-Century Modern Chandeliers and Pendants
Ceramic
Vintage 1970s American Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
Vintage 1970s American Chandeliers and Pendants
Brass
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Unusual Chandeliers For Sale on 1stDibs
How Much are Unusual Chandeliers?
Finding the Right Chandeliers And Pendants for You
Chandeliers — simple in form, inspired by candelabras and originally made of wood or iron — first made an appearance in early churches. For those wealthy enough to afford them for their homes in the medieval period, a chandelier's suspended lights likely exuded imminent danger, as lit candles served as the light source for fixtures of the era. Things have thankfully changed since then, and antique chandeliers and pendant lights are popular in many interiors today.
While gas lighting during the late 18th century represented an upgrade for chandeliers — and gas lamps would long inspire Danish architect and pioneering modernist lighting designer Poul Henningsen — it would eventually be replaced with the familiar electric lighting of today.
The key difference between a pendant light and a chandelier is that a pendant incorporates only a single bulb into its design. Don’t mistake this for simplicity, however. An Art Deco–styled homage to Sputnik from Murano glass artisans Giovanni Dalla Fina, with handcrafted decorative elements supported by a chrome frame, is just one stunning example of the elaborate engineering that can be incorporated into every component of a chandelier. (Note: there is more than one lighting fixture that shares its name with the iconic mid-century-era satellite — see Gino Sarfatti’s design too.)
Chandeliers have evolved over time, but their classic elegance has remained unchanged.
Not only will the right chandelier prove impressive in a given room, but it can also offer a certain sense of practicality. These fixtures can easily illuminate an entire space, while their elevated position prevents them from creating glare or straining one’s eyes.
Certain materials, like glass, can complement naturally lit settings without stealing the show. Brass, on the other hand, can introduce an alluring, warm glow. While LEDs have earned a bad reputation for their perceived harsh bluish lights and a loss of brightness over their life span, the right design choices can help harness their lighting potential and create the perfect mood. A careful approach to lighting can transform your room into a peaceful and cozy nook, ideal for napping, reading or working.
For midsize spaces, a wall light or sconce can pull the room together and get the lighting job done. Perforated steel rings underneath five bands of handspun aluminum support a rich diffusion of light within Alvar Aalto's Beehive pendant light, but if you’re looking to brighten a more modest room, perhaps a minimalist solution is what you’re after. The mid-century modern furniture designer Charlotte Perriand devised her CP-1 wall lamps in the 1960s, in which a repositioning of sheet-metal plates can redirect light as needed.
The versatility and variability of these lighting staples mean that, when it comes to finding something like the perfect chandelier, you’ll never be left hanging. From the natural world-inspired designs of the Art Nouveau era to the classic beauty of Paul Ferrante's fixtures, there is a style for every room.
With designs for pendant lights and chandeliers across eras, colors and materials, you’ll never run out of options to explore on 1stDibs — shop a collection today that includes antique Art Deco chandeliers, Stilnovo chandeliers, Baccarat chandeliers and more.
Read More
This Paavo Tynell Chandelier Is a Radiant Bouquet
The alluring pendant light exemplifies the designer’s winsome mid-career work.
Ettore Sottsass Captures a Shooting Star in This Rare 1970s Floor Lamp
Before founding the Memphis Group, Sottsass bent the rules of lighting design with the wonderfully wavy Cometa.
You Don’t Need a Fictional Fairy to Get This Real Pinocchio Lamp
Warm chalet style meets cool Bauhaus functionality in Pietro Cascella’s cleverly carved creation.
Why Is Italy Such a Hotbed of Cool Design?
Patrizio Chiarparini of Brooklyn’s Duplex gallery sheds light on the lasting legacy of Italy’s postwar furniture boom.
With a High-Tech Flagship and Cool Collabs, Lladró Is Breaking the Mold for Porcelain Production
Thanks to its new leadership, the Spanish maker of figurines, busts and lighting is on a mission to update the art of porcelain for the 21st century.
Christopher Tennant’s Lamps and Dioramas Evoke Sunny Days and Seaside Locales
The former magazine editor blends elements of the Far East and America’s eastern shores, bringing wit and delight to his handmade, upcycled designs.
Paavo Tynell’s Snowflake Chandelier Warms Up Any Room
This circa 1950 piece by the legendary Finnish lighting designer spent the past several decades in a family's home in Michigan.
NASA Parachutes Inspired Lighting Designer Bec Brittain’s New Collection
In "Paraciphers," now on view at Emma Scully Gallery in New York, Brittain introduces works that were more than a decade in the making.