Biedermeier Buffets
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.
Early 19th Century Baltic Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Brass
1830s German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
Mid-19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Softwood, Pine, Spruce
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
19th Century Swedish Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Satin, Birch, Maple
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Cherry
1890s Swedish Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Brass
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Brass
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut, Burl
1890s Austrian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Cherry
19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Wood
Late 19th Century Italian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
1830s German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Metal, Brass
19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Burl
1810s German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
1830s German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Brass
Early 20th Century Spanish Biedermeier Buffets
Iron
Early 20th Century American Biedermeier Buffets
Brass
Early 19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Cherry
19th Century Czech Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
Mid-19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Brass
Early 19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Marble, Bronze
1890s Swedish Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
Late 19th Century European Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
1830s German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Mahogany
1920s German Vintage Biedermeier Buffets
Oak
1840s European Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Ash, Walnut, Paint
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Walnut
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Fruitwood
Mid-19th Century Austrian Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Brass
20th Century American Biedermeier Buffets
19th Century French Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Elm, Burl, Hardwood
Mid-19th Century German Antique Biedermeier Buffets
Fruitwood, Wood