Vintage 1950s Dunhill London Design J 6151 Brass & Bronze Pipe Desk Ashtray
By Alfred Dunhill
Located in St. Louis, MO
A classic, beautifully preserved mid-20th-century vintage solid bronze with copper plating, pipe, cigar or cigarette ashtray and desk bowl, designed and manufactured by the iconic lu...
Bronze
Vintage Murano Gold Flecked Glass Bowl
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
Exuding Venetian glamour and mid-century elegance, this vintage Murano hand-blown glass bowl showcases the famed Italian mastery of gold leaf inclusion (aventurine). Thick, clear mou...
Glass, Murano Glass
$248Sale Price / set|20% Off
1970s Italian Red Glazed Ceramic and Brass Smoker Set Smoking hode decor
Located in Nicolosi, IT
Elegant 1970s smoking set composed of four coordinated elements in glossy red glazed ceramic with brass accents, a striking combination typical of the refined decorative objects prod...
Brass
Italian Wooden Humidor with Brass Corner Accents and Moisture control
Located in Los Angeles, CA
A beautifully designed wooden humidor with brass corners. The size is perfect for the side table, smoking room, desk or work station. inside top holds a sponge for creating the amo...
Brass
Henriot Champagne Ashtray, Thick Glass, Square Design, France, 1960s
Located in Auribeau sur Siagne, FR
Henriot Champagne advertising ashtray, France, 1960s, made of thick molded glass, an iconic promotional item for breweries and champagne houses. Square with beveled corners, this ash...
Glass
Romano Bianchi Alabaster Smoking Set, Handmade, Italy, 1960s
Located in Milano, IT
1960s Stunning alabaster smoking set by Romano Bianchi with ashtray, cigarette box and table lighter, everything is handmade carved. Made in Italy. This smoking set is in excellent c...
Alabaster
hyalyn Porcelain Green Bisque & Gold Enamel Briard Ashtray, 1960s
By Hyalyn
Located in Philadelphia, PA
A large Mid-Century Era pottery coffee table ashtray, designed by Georges Briard for hyalyn Porcelain, early 1960s. The avocado green, kidney shaped ashtray is from the Midas line....
Pottery
Murano Vintage Blue Aventurine Flecks Italian Art Glass Decorative Bowl Dish
By Alfredo Barbini
Located in Kissimmee, FL
Beautiful vintage Murano hand blown sky blue and copper aventurine flecks spotted Italian art glass decorative bowl / ashtray. The piece is created in the manner of designer Alfredo ...
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass
Jacques Adnet Hand-Stitched Leather Ashtray, France, 1950
By Jacques Adnet
Located in Conversano, IT
Overview An elegant leather ashtray by Jacques Adnet, France, 1950s. Hand-stitched saddle leather frames a metal ashtray well, in the refined equestrian-modernist style for which Adn...
Leather, Glass
$600Sale Price / set|20% Off
1960s Italian Three Piece Orange Genuine Hand Carved Alabaster Smoking Set
Located in Haarlem, NL
Very decorative 1960s Italian hand carved orange alabaster smoking set by Romano Bianchi. Consists of a heavy ashtray, also very useful as trinket dish or vide-poche. A table ligh...
Alabaster
$303Sale Price|20% Off
Midcentury Travertine Ashtray in the Style of Fratelli Mannelli, Italy, 1970s
By Fratelli Mannelli
Located in Roma, IT
Sculptural Ashtray attributable to the historic company Fratelli Mannelli, specialized in the processing of travertine. Known for its collaboration with the designer Enzo Mari, who ...
Travertine
WWII Private Theater: Gay American Soldier in Reflection
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
WWII, how are you? Private Theater: Gay American Soldier in Reflection, Original WWII-Era Gouache, Signed CSG A highly nuanced, emotionally layered, and visually accomplished origin...
Glass, Giltwood, Paper
$330Sale Price|20% Off
1950s Gala Sonic Chrome Model of a Jet Fighter Plane
By Ronson
Located in Dereham, GB
Vintage Chrome plated table lighter, in the form of a Jet fighter Plane circa 1950 Cigarette lighter cased in the planes body, [ball catch] Stylised Bracket to hold swivel ball, to...
Chrome
Murano Sommerso Glowing Uranium Orange Yellow Italian Art Glass Ashtray Bowl
By Antonio da Ros, Cenedese, Salviati
Located in Kissimmee, FL
Beautiful, and large, vintage Murano hand blown Sommerso yellow and orange stripe Italian art glass rock shaped bowl, ashtray / sculpture. The piece is created in the manner of desig...
Glass, Art Glass, Blown Glass, Murano Glass, Sommerso, Uranium Glass
Barovier Toso Murano Purple Gold Flecks Italian Art Glass Chunky Ashtray Bowl
By Barovier&Toso, Ercole Barovier
Located in Kissimmee, FL
Beautiful vintage Murano hand blown dark purple, controlled bubbles and gold flecks Italian art glass triangle shape bowl. The piece is documented to designer Ercole Barovier, for th...
Gold Leaf
$520Sale Price|20% Off
Barovier Toso Murano Gold Flecks White Swirl Italian Art Glass Heart Dish Bowl
By Barovier&Toso
Located in Kissimmee, FL
Beautiful vintage Murano hand blown white and gold flecks Italian art glass heart shaped bowl. Documented to the Barovier e Toso company. The bowl has a decorative optic swirl design...
Gold Leaf
Barovier Toso Murano Gold Flecks Blue Swirl Italian Art Glass Heart Dish Bowl
By Barovier&Toso, Ercole Barovier
Located in Kissimmee, FL
Beautiful, and very rare, vintage Murano hand blown blue and gold flecks Italian art glass heart shaped bowl. The piece is documented to the Barovier e Toso company. The bowl is full...
Gold Leaf
Vintage Mayan Aztec Marble Large Ashtray Centerpiece
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Vintage brown marble square ashtray Mayan Aztec hand carved in natural earth tones. Great Post Modern style design on this hand carved polished marble, large ashtray circa 1960s-70s ...
Onyx, Marble
Murano Violet Crystal Glass Ashtray, Italy, 1960s–1970s
Located in COLMAR, FR
A refined example of Italian Mid-Century Modern glassmaking, this parallelogram-form ashtray is crafted from solid violet amethyst crystal glass — tinted throughout the melt to achie...
Art Glass
$3,000
1950s Hermès Smoking Set
By Hermès
Located in Autonomous City Buenos Aires, CABA
Classic vintage Hermès cigarette box. Cigarette box is heavy and wrapped in leather. Cornucopia (Horn of Plenty) decorative lid. Removable metal insert to organize cigarettes by hei...
Metal
Murano Seguso Vetri d'Arte Poli Red Gold Flecks Italian Art Glass Ashtray Bowl
By Seguso Vetri d'Arte, Archimede Seguso, Flavio Poli
Located in Kissimmee, FL
Beautiful vintage Murano hand blown ruby red, bubbles and gold flecks Italian art glass ashtray / bowl. The piece is documented to the Seguso Vetri D' Arte company, circa 1940s. Simi...
Gold Leaf
$634Sale Price / set|20% Off
Vintage Hand-Carved Alabaster Jewelry Boxes by Romano Bianchi, 1970s
By Bianchi Factory
Located in Ljubljana, SI
We are pleased to offer a pair of exclusive vintage cigarette cases or jewelry boxes, attributed to the renowned Italian artisan Romano Bianchi and crafted in Italy during the 1970s....
Alabaster
AVeM Murano Red Millefiori Flower Silver Flecks Ribbon Italian Art Glass Bowl
By Giulio Radi, Arte Vetraria Muranese (AVEM)
Located in Kissimmee, FL
Beautiful and large, vintage Murano hand blown red, silver, copper aventurine, millefiori flower murrines and twisted ribbons Italian art glass center bowl. It is documented to the A...
Silver Leaf
Aldo Tura Carved Pear Wood Lidded Box with Bronze Crab, 1940
By Aldo Tura
Located in Conversano, IT
Overview A rare early lidded box by Aldo Tura, made in Italy in the 1940s. Hand-carved from solid pear wood, featuring a softly undulating, sculptural surface and a warm amber patina...
Bronze
AVeM Murano White Millefiori Flower Silver Flecks Vintage Italian Art Glass Bowl
By Arte Vetraria Muranese (AVEM), Giulio Radi
Located in Kissimmee, FL
Beautiful vintage Murano hand blown white, silver flecks, copper aventurine, millefiori flower murrines and twisted ribbons Italian art glass bowl / ashtray. Documented to the A.Ve.M...
Silver Leaf
$520Sale Price|20% Off
Vallauris Lava Ceramic Cigar Ashtray Marius Giuge Catchall Vide Poche 1960s
By Marius Giuge
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
Mid-Century Modern Vallauris Ashtray Bowl attributed to Marius Giuge, France, 1960s Large Fat Lava Glazed Ceramic in Octagonal Form with Turquoise, Ochre and Brown Palette Highly co...
Lava
$720Sale Price / item|20% Off
1950s Italian Murano Blue Cased Glass Ormolu Set in Veritable Opaline de Murano
Located in Haarlem, NL
1950s set of three blue opaline glass items. Made in Italy The bright blue milk, opaline or cased glass is heavy and thick, all items have a decorative ormolu brass mount or rim ...
Brass
Vintage Italian Ceramic Ashtray with Brown Glaze and Black Border, 1970s
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Elegant mid-century Italian ceramic ashtray, dating to the 1970s, characterized by a refined rectangular form with softly chamfered corners. The interior features a rich, variegated ...
Ceramic
Vintage Cristal France Crystal Square Individual Ashtray Candle Holder
Located in Moreno Valley, CA
The central circular well is framed by four integrated cigarette rests, creating a refined geometric composition that reflects the clean lines associated with Mid-Century Modern, Fre...
Crystal
Glass Ashtray, France, 1960s
Located in Auribeau sur Siagne, FR
Style : Mid-Century Modern French Design Modernist Art Glassware Space Age 1960s Key Features : Thick molded glass Gradient green and amber coloring Three cigarette holders Sculptur...
Glass, Art Glass
1960s Giant Lighter Idealine for 1930s Mega Yacht & War Ship USS VILEEHI
Located in Red Lion, PA
This extraordinary vintage giant working table lighter is a monumental piece of mid-century maritime and tobaccoliana history, custom engraved for the legendary Mega Yacht VILEEHI.
Metal
"Fuzz" Brute Gay LGBT Contemporary NYC Male Portrait Large Painting
By Robert Loughlin
Located in New York, NY
Loughlin win over many New York collectors to the simple line, laminated sleekness and functional yet beautiful form in Modern and mid-century modern design. At a time when antiques...
Oil, Mixed Media, Cardboard
$18,000
"Cop on Vacation" Brute Gay LGBT Contemporary NYC Male Portrait Painting
By Robert Loughlin
Located in New York, NY
Loughlin win over many New York collectors to the simple line, laminated sleekness and functional yet beautiful form in Modern and mid-century modern design. At a time when antiques...
Canvas, Oil
Organically shaped, clean-lined and elegantly simple are three terms that well describe vintage mid-century modern furniture. The style, which emerged primarily in the years following World War II, is characterized by pieces that were conceived and made in an energetic, optimistic spirit by creators who believed that good design was an essential part of good living.
ORIGINS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
CHARACTERISTICS OF MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGN
MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNERS TO KNOW
ICONIC MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE DESIGNS
VINTAGE MID-CENTURY MODERN FURNITURE ON 1STDIBS
The mid-century modern era saw leagues of postwar American architects and designers animated by new ideas and new technology. The lean, functionalist International-style architecture of Le Corbusier and Bauhaus eminences Ludwig Mies van der Rohe and Walter Gropius had been promoted in the United States during the 1930s by Philip Johnson and others. New building techniques, such as “post-and-beam” construction, allowed the International-style schemes to be realized on a small scale in open-plan houses with long walls of glass.
Materials developed for wartime use became available for domestic goods and were incorporated into mid-century modern furniture designs. Charles and Ray Eames and Eero Saarinen, who had experimented extensively with molded plywood, eagerly embraced fiberglass for pieces such as the La Chaise and the Womb chair, respectively.
Architect, writer and designer George Nelson created with his team shades for the Bubble lamp using a new translucent polymer skin and, as design director at Herman Miller, recruited the Eameses, Alexander Girard and others for projects at the legendary Michigan furniture manufacturer.
Harry Bertoia and Isamu Noguchi devised chairs and tables built of wire mesh and wire struts. Materials were repurposed too: The Danish-born designer Jens Risom created a line of chairs using surplus parachute straps for webbed seats and backrests.
The Risom lounge chair was among the first pieces of furniture commissioned and produced by celebrated manufacturer Knoll, a chief influencer in the rise of modern design in the United States, thanks to the work of Florence Knoll, the pioneering architect and designer who made the firm a leader in its field. The seating that Knoll created for office spaces — as well as pieces designed by Florence initially for commercial clients — soon became desirable for the home.
As the demand for casual, uncluttered furnishings grew, more mid-century furniture designers caught the spirit.
Classically oriented creators such as Edward Wormley, house designer for Dunbar Inc., offered such pieces as the sinuous Listen to Me chaise; the British expatriate T.H. Robsjohn-Gibbings switched gears, creating items such as the tiered, biomorphic Mesa table. There were Young Turks such as Paul McCobb, who designed holistic groups of sleek, blond wood furniture, and Milo Baughman, who espoused a West Coast aesthetic in minimalist teak dining tables and lushly upholstered chairs and sofas with angular steel frames.
Generations turn over, and mid-century modern remains arguably the most popular style going. As the collection of vintage mid-century modern chairs, dressers, coffee tables and other furniture for the living room, dining room, bedroom and elsewhere on 1stDibs demonstrates, this period saw one of the most delightful and dramatic flowerings of creativity in design history.
It's hard to resist the allure of a beautiful pool. So, go ahead and daydream about whiling away your summer in paradise.
Modern icons are showing up in gracefully layered dining nooks, living rooms and lounges — proof that great design only gets better with context.
With its grid-like doors and wavy trim, the 1940s design feels as fresh as ever.
The alluring pendant light exemplifies the designer’s winsome mid-career work.
Prehistoric motifs give the mid-century Italian fireplace an elemental feel.
Their charming solid-oak pieces offer homes utility and comfort.
You know the designs, now get the stories about how they came to be.
Designer Susan Yeley turned to 1stDibs to outfit an Indiana home with standout pieces that complement its modernist style.