What is the difference between a library and desk chair?

In these listings, very little. Desk chair appears in 221 titles and office chair in 54, and dealers use both labels for the same open-arm and upholstered forms. Titles like "19th century mahogany desk or library chair" show the overlap plainly. Read the description and the photographs for the form rather than relying on the label.

Which wood is most common?

Mahogany, by a wide margin. It is named in 586 of 1,648 titles, with oak at 189, walnut at 134 and rosewood at 59. Other timbers surface only once or twice across the samples, among them ebony, yew, elm, ash, birds-eye maple, teak and pollard oak.

How old are most of these chairs?

The dated field runs from 1750 to 1930, but only 582 listings carry a clean year. The rest sit under style labels: 19th Century for 489, Victorian for 184, Regency for 158, Georgian for 61. Where decades are given they cluster mid to late 19th century, with the 1880s and 1850s strongest. There is a real early-20th-century tail as well, taking in Edwardian examples and 1930s oak and leather armchairs.

Do library chairs come in pairs?

Often. Pair appears in 336 titles, one in five, and sets of four, six, eight and ten have all passed through. Those matched groups, particularly with Regency or Georgian dates, hold the top of the range.

What is a metamorphic library chair?

A chair built to convert into a set of library steps, so one piece of furniture serves as seat and ladder. Sixty-nine titles use the term. Several are catalogued simply as library steps and side chair. They form a small but steady seam within the category, and they sit well up the range.

Are named makers common in this category?

No. Gillows is the only name to clear three dealers, appearing from ten dealers across twelve mentions. Even then it often reads as "attributed to" or "in the manner of" rather than a stamped or labelled piece. The great majority of library chairs are sold on form, timber and date alone.

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Antique Library Chairs

745 items · page 12 of 47

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A library chair is an open-arm or deep upholstered armchair made for reading and desk work, the sort of seat a 19th-century library or study needed.

Pair of Regency Style Mahogany Bergère Armchairs

1900 - 1920

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Pair of Regency Style Mahogany Bergère Armchairs

From Shackladys Antiques

£1,875

FOR SALE

chairs

1900 - 1920

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Pair of 20th Century French Empire Library Armchairs

From Michael Youll Antiques

£950

FOR SALE

chairs

19th century

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Victorian Oak Office/desk Chair

From James O'Malley Antiques

£650

FOR SALE

chairs

1900 - 1920

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A Mahogany Caned Bergère Armchair

From Beech and Springs Antiques

£980

FOR SALE

chairs

Superb Quality Early 20th Century George II Style Mahogany Gainsborough Leather Open Armchair

1920 - 1940

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Superb Quality Early 20th Century George II Style Mahogany Gainsborough Leather Open Armchair

From LVS Decorative Arts

£3,250

FOR SALE

chairs

18th century

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George II Gainsborough Armchair

From Hesketh Antiques

£2,800

FOR SALE

chairs

19th century

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Mid 19th Century Walnut Library Chair

From Walton House Antiques

£380

FOR SALE

chairs

A William IV Button Leather Reclining Chair

19th century

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A William IV Button Leather Reclining Chair

From W.J. Gravener Antiques Ltd.

£3,450

FOR SALE

chairs

19th century

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Birds Eye Maple Folding Campaign Chair

From Hunt Gather Antiques

£575

FOR SALE

chairs

Important George III Period Carved and Painted Gainsborough Chair

18th century

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Important George III Period Carved and Painted Gainsborough Chair

From Webberley Antiques

£4,800

FOR SALE

chairs

Some library chairs turn over into a set of library steps. Sixty-nine have come through the archive, a few catalogued simply as "library steps & side chair".

Georgian Armchair on Hipped Cabriole Legs

18th century

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Georgian Armchair on Hipped Cabriole Legs

From Tom Scott Antiques

£1,850

FOR SALE

chairs

1900 - 1920

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Leather Tub Chair

From D J Green Antiques

£550

FOR SALE

chairs

18th century

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A Pair of Lovely Anglo-indian Rosewood Library or Side Chairs C1830

From Marlborough Antiques & Interiors

£2,850

FOR SALE

chairs

A Fine Late Victorian Leather Wing Armchair

19th century

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A Fine Late Victorian Leather Wing Armchair

From Chequers Antiques

£2,450

FOR SALE

chairs

18th century

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18th Century Gainsborough Armchair

From Hesketh Antiques

£2,200

FOR SALE

chairs

Antique Victorian Carved Mahogany and Leather Armchair

19th century

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Antique Victorian Carved Mahogany and Leather Armchair

From Marylebone Antiques

£2,500

FOR SALE

chairs

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Antique Library Chairs

Pair of Regency Style Mahogany Bergère Armchairs

Pair of 20th Century French Empire Library Armchairs

Victorian Oak Office/desk Chair

A Mahogany Caned Bergère Armchair

Superb Quality Early 20th Century George II Style Mahogany Gainsborough Leather Open Armchair

George II Gainsborough Armchair

Mid 19th Century Walnut Library Chair

A William IV Button Leather Reclining Chair

Birds Eye Maple Folding Campaign Chair

Important George III Period Carved and Painted Gainsborough Chair

Georgian Armchair on Hipped Cabriole Legs

Leather Tub Chair

A Pair of Lovely Anglo-indian Rosewood Library or Side Chairs C1830

A Fine Late Victorian Leather Wing Armchair

18th Century Gainsborough Armchair

Antique Victorian Carved Mahogany and Leather Armchair

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