19th Century Venetian Silver Gilt Grotto Seahorse Bench
Located in Houston, TX
19th century Venetian Silver Gilt Grotto Seahorse Bench. Chic and unusual Venetian Baroque silver gilt Grotto bench, settee, canapé or banquette with seahorses from the 19th century.
Fabric, Wood
Venetian Grotto Style Bench
Located in East Hampton, NY
A unique and beautiful carved and gilded Venetian grotto style bench with carved shell legs and scalloped seat.
Wood, Giltwood
Vintage Coastal Venetian Gilt Carved Grotto and Seahorse Bench
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Transport your space to a dreamy Venetian seaside with this Vintage Gilt Carved Grotto and Seahorse Bench. Exquisitely crafted, this one-of-a-kind piece features a hand-carved grotto...
Wood, Paint
Italian Hand Carved Grotto Tête-à-Tête Bench in Walnut
Located in Lancaster, PA
This is a hand-carved Italian grotto tête-à-tête bench, dating to the mid- 20th century.
Walnut
Vintage Coastal Venetian Gilt Carved Grotto Tete-A-Tete
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Elevate your coastal décor with this exquisite Vintage Coastal Venetian Gilt Carved Grotto Tête-à-Tête. This rare and luxurious piece features an intricately carved frame inspired by...
Wood
Pair of 18th Century Venetian Carved Eagle Chairs or Benches
Located in Houston, TX
Pair of 18th century Venetian carved eagle Grotto chairs or benches. These rare and stunning carved eagle chairs, also known as fantasy furniture have been artistically carved in wal...
Wood, Walnut
Fruitwood Grotto Piano Stool, Venice, circa 1880
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
A beautiful carved antique fruitwood grotto stool, the bench standing on cabriole legs joined with a bottom stretcher, and bun feet reminiscent of animal paws, made in Venice around ...
Fruitwood
19th Century Venetian Grotto Swivel Bench
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Beautiful 19th Century Venetian grotto swivel bench. Amazing carving details and gorgeous original stained wood finish.
Wood
Venetian Style Parcel-Gilt Shell Form Grotto Chairs
Located in Wichita, KS
Beautiful pair of Venetian style parcel-gilt "Grotto" chairs. The seats are carved and are modeled as upturned shells, raised on supports carved as dolphins, ending on tripartite bas...
Wood, Giltwood
Antique Green Cast Iron Grotto / Garden Bench
By Janes Beebe & Co
Located in Bridgeport, CT
With great weight and very good condition and form. Stamped in the iron, "Jane. Beebe & Co. N.Y".
Iron
Polychrome-Decorated Grotto Piano Stool, Venice, circa 1900
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
A beautiful carved antique fruitwood grotto stool, polychrome-decorated, the bench standing on cabriole legs joined with a bottom stretcher, and bun feet reminiscent of animal paws m...
Wood
Gorgeous Fruitwood Grotto Piano Stool, Venice, circa 1880
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
A beautiful carved antique fruitwood grotto stool, the bench standing on cabriole legs joined with a bottom stretcher, and bun feet reminiscent of animal paws, made in Venice around ...
Pine
Gorgeous Fruitwood Grotto Piano Stool, Venice, c.1880
Located in Royal Tunbridge Wells, Kent
A beautiful carved antique fruitwood grotto stool, the bench standing on cabriole legs joined with a bottom stretcher, and bun feet reminiscent of animal paws, made in Venice around ...
Pine
Sold
H 27 in Dm 15.5 in
19th Century Grotto Fantasy Stool, Swivel, Italian, Gilt Gold, CIE Pauly Manner
By Pauly et Cie
Located in Stamford, CT
A Fine Grotto stool or Piano bench. This one of a kind bench swivels and adjust from 17.5 to 21 inches in seat height.
Giltwood
Venetian Carved and Gilded Grotto Bench
Located in North Hollywood, CA
This remarkable design is hand carved wood, gilded in silver leaf and applied stains. The bench is in fantastic condition, having been restored some time back. The construction is so...
Giltwood
Grotte style Loveseat/Bench
Located in Stamford, CT
Carved wooden Grotto Bench with gold accents.
Wood
Painted Grotto Style Tete a Tete Bench
Located in New York, NY
White Laquered
Wood
Sold
H 17 in W 17 in D 17 in
Pair of Italian Giltwood Grotto Stools Upholstered in Leather, circa 1870
Located in San Francisco, CA
A very rare pair of Italian carved and giltwood stools in the grotto or fantasy furniture style. This pair is carved to imitate vines and branches. Recently upholstered in leather wi...
Leather, Upholstery, Wood, Giltwood
Giltwood Grotto Stool/Bench
Located in Corona Del Mar, CA
Handcarved silver gilt grotto stool features stylized pillow seat decorated with carved tassels atop trio of dolphin scrolled legs joined by ribbon carved stretcher topped with flor...
Venetian Grotto Style Piano Bench
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Fine 19th century elaborately carved swivel stool with traces of gilding on shell carved seat.
Wood
19th Century Venetian Fantasy Grotto Style Revolving Bench
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Fashioned with a shell form swivel seat. The stool is nicely carved with a mellow fruitwood patina. Superb quality and details.
Fruitwood
Venetian Grotto Guiltwood Vanity Stool
Located in Oakland Park, FL
Venetian guiltwood vanity bench/stool sea shell shape carved seat and cabriolet legs. (does not swivel).
Gold Leaf
$2,472 / item
H 11.8 in W 11.8 in D 7.5 in
Tulip Organic Modern Contemporary Wall Sconce, Wall Light in White Plaster
By Hannah Woodhouse
Located in London, GB
Handmade Tulip organic modern wall light/ wall sconce, in silky smooth white plaster, created by artist Hannah Woodhouse in her London studio. Contemporary organic modern design insp...
Plaster
$2,800
H 10.75 in W 5.25 in D 4.4 in
Striking Art Nouveau Ceramic and Bronze-Mounted Vase in Victor Horta Style
By Victor Horta
Located in Lisse, NL
Top condition and pure elegance Art Nouveau vase. For the collectors of museum quality and condition Art Nouveau ceramics. This stunning Art Nouveau vase is decorated with the mos...
Bronze
Antique Chinese Hand Painted Lacquer Scene Gilt Fan with Lacquer Box
Located in Brea, CA
19th century antique Chinese hand painted lacquer scene gilt fan with original lacquer box.
Lacquer
$116,746
H 240 in W 552 in D 120 in
Mid-Victorian Moorish wrought & cast iron pergola or decorative garden structure
Located in London, GB
A monumental Moorish mid-Victorian wrought iron Pergola or Decorative Garden Structure, a unique masterpiece in High Victorian Ironwork design. Our research confirms it is French, da...
Wrought Iron
$7,250
H 16 in W 22 in
17th century follower of Rubens, two military men on horse back in a landscape
Located in Woodbury, CT
17th century English/Dutch School, from the Circle of Sir Peter Paul Rubens A very interesting and well-painted 17th-century oil on canvas of two men seated on horseback in a landsc...
Canvas, Oil
Midcentury French Faux Bois Concrete Garden Bench, c. 1940
Located in Wichita, KS
A very rare faux bois concrete confident or tête-à-tête (conversation seat). This beautiful garden bench has the appearance of tree bark, found in the Provence region of France, c. 1...
Concrete
1920s French Art Deco Burl Walnut Full Size Bed Frame
Located in Astoria, NY
A French Art Deco bed frame, dating from the early 20th century, sourced in Provence, France. Richly crafted with dramatic burl walnut veneers and floral marquetry inlays, the piece ...
Brass
Pair of Gold Leaf Grotto Shell Back Chairs
By Tony Duquette
Located in North Hollywood, CA
Pair of gold leaf grotto shell back side chairs. These have been professionally restored, gold leafed and reupholstered. Please ask for upholstery fabric swatch if needed. We also ha...
Beech
$1,980
H 24.5 in W 9 in D 3.5 in
Dolphin Fish Metal Bronze Door Stop, Art Nouveau Vintage European 1920s
Located in Nuernberg, DE
A beautiful and substantial Nautical, cast metal, antique doorstop with original patina finish. Depicting a mythological grotto dolphin style sea serpent coiled around Poseidon's tri...
Metal, Bronze
Early Meiji Period Japanese Elm Shadona Cabinet
Located in Dekalb, IL
c. 1870s/1880s; Japan Late 19th century decorative keyaki (Japanese elm) cabinet. This ornate, pagoda-inspired piece dates to the early/middle Meiji period in Japan and is construc...
Elm
Harvey Probber American Mid-Century Green Velvet Round Sofa
By Harvey Probber
Located in Queens, NY
American Mid-Century large round sofa with a low curved partial backrest and emerald green velvet upholstery with a button tufted removable seat cushion, resting on five short brass ...
Metal, Brass
$187,500
H 102 in W 84.5 in D 22.5 in
Exceptional 19th Century English Chinoiserie Pagoda Display Cabinet
Located in Houston, TX
Large-scale 19th century English display cabinet executed in the Chinoiserie tradition. Constructed in carved mahogany and conceived as a tripartite architectural façade, each glazed...
Glass, Mahogany
$3,900
H 6.5 in W 5 in D 5 in
Art Nouveau Gres Bijou Butterfly & Spiderweb Gourd-Shaped Vase by RStK Amphora
By Reissner Stellmacher & Kessel
Located in Palm Beach, FL
Note: We highly recommend shipping through 1stDibs for its cost effectiveness, full insurance coverage, and reliable handling. While standard parcel services are an option, the defau...
Earthenware, Glass
Vintage Italian "Grotto" Chandelier Encrusted with Sea Shells and Coral
Located in Dallas, TX
The Vintage Italian "Grotto" Chandelier is a unique and elegant lighting fixture that adds a touch of coastal charm to any room. Encrusted with sea shells and coral, this chandelier ...
Coral
$19,190
H 40.56 in W 108.27 in D 29.53 in
Giltwood "Confidente" Large Sofa in the Louis XV Style made by La Maison London
By La Maison London
Located in London, Park Royal
An elegant and impressive large Louis XV style confidante sofa which has been hand carved and gilded using traditional methods and materials to achieve an authentic period finish. Th...
Wood, Giltwood
$14,000
H 120 in W 48 in D 2.25 in
Pair of Heroic Sunburst Style Doors after Billy Joe McCarroll and David Gillespe
By Billy Joe Mccarroll and David Gillespe
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Designed after the incredible work of Billy Joe McCarroll and David Gillespe, these doors are designed after the 'Heroic Sunburst' doors, which now fetch tens of thousands of dollars...
Bronze, Metal
With entire areas of our homes reserved for “sitting rooms,” the value of quality antique and vintage seating cannot be overstated.
Fortunately, the design of side chairs, armchairs and other lounge furniture — since what were, quite literally, the early perches of our ancestors — has evolved considerably.
Among the earliest standard seating furniture were stools. Egyptian stools, for example, designed for one person with no seat back, were x-shaped and typically folded to be tucked away. These rudimentary chairs informed the design of Greek and Roman stools, all of which were a long way from Sori Yanagi's Butterfly stool or Alvar Aalto's Stool 60. In the 18th century and earlier, seats with backs and armrests were largely reserved for high nobility.
The seating of today is more inclusive but the style and placement of chairs can still make a statement. Antique desk chairs and armchairs designed in the style of Louis XV, which eventually included painted furniture and were often made of rare woods, feature prominently curved legs as well as Chinese themes and varied ornaments. Much like the thrones of fairy tales and the regency, elegant lounges crafted in the Louis XV style convey wealth and prestige. In the kitchen, the dining chair placed at the head of the table is typically reserved for the head of the household or a revered guest.
Of course, with luxurious vintage or antique furnishings, every chair can seem like the best seat in the house. Whether your preference is stretching out on a plush sofa, such as the Serpentine, designed by Vladimir Kagan, or cozying up in a vintage wingback chair, there is likely to be a comfy classic or contemporary gem for you on 1stDibs.
With respect to the latest obsessions in design, cane seating has been cropping up everywhere, from sleek armchairs to lounge chairs, while bouclé fabric, a staple of modern furniture design, can be seen in mid-century modern, Scandinavian modern and Hollywood Regency furniture styles.
Admirers of the sophisticated craftsmanship and dark woods frequently associated with mid-century modern seating can find timeless furnishings in our expansive collection of lounge chairs, dining chairs and other items — whether they’re vintage editions or alluring official reproductions of iconic designs from the likes of Hans Wegner or from Charles and Ray Eames. Shop our inventory of Egg chairs, designed in 1958 by Arne Jacobsen, the Florence Knoll lounge chair and more.
No matter your style, the collection of unique chairs, sofas and other seating on 1stDibs is surely worthy of a standing ovation.
Modern icons are showing up in gracefully layered dining nooks, living rooms and lounges — proof that great design only gets better with context.
Andrianna Shamaris has filled her epic new home with pieces of her own design.
Top interior designers show — and tell — us how to create delectable spaces for hosting dinner parties.
With its plush cushions, cane details and dazzlingly colorful back, it’s inviting from every angle.
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
The plush Cove Slipper 2.5 Seater sofa is just one of many convenient combinations from the London-based maker.
Sam Klemick's cool stool is edgy, cozy and environmentally sustainable all at once.
From his massive collaborative workshop in a former paper factory, the designer concocts funky furniture from disused materials, as well as luxe hotel interiors like the new Mix Brussels.