Bauhaus Tubular Steel Desk by Bruno Weil for Thonet, Stained Wood, Germany, 1930
About the Item
- Creator:Thonet (Manufacturer),Bruno Weil (Designer)
- Dimensions:Height: 29.53 in (75 cm)Width: 53.94 in (137 cm)Depth: 29.93 in (76 cm)
- Style:Bauhaus (Of the Period)
- Materials and Techniques:
- Place of Origin:
- Period:
- Date of Manufacture:c. 1930
- Condition:Wear consistent with age and use. Minor structural damages. Minor fading.
- Seller Location:Berlin, DE
- Reference Number:1stDibs: LU1972335590682
Thonet
For more than 180 years, Thonet — or Gebrüder Thonet — has produced elegant and durable tables and cabinets as well as chairs, stools and other seating that wholly blur the lines between art and design. Widely known as a trailblazer in the use of bentwood in furniture, the European manufacturer has reimagined the places in which we gather.
Noted for his skill in parquetry, German-Austrian company founder Michael Thonet received an invitation from Austrian Chancellor Prince Metternich to contribute Neo-Rococo interiors to the Liechtenstein City Palace in Vienna. The Boppard-born Thonet had honed his carpentry skills in his father’s workshop, where he carried out experiments with plywood and modified the Biedermeier chairs that populated the studio.
Thonet’s work for the chancellor raised his profile, and the cabinetmaker gained international recognition, including at London’s Great Exhibition of 1851, which featured works created by members of the Arts and Crafts movement as well as industrial products of the day. Thonet showed a range of furniture at the fair and won the bronze medal for his bentwood chairs. He incorporated his family’s company, the Thonet Brothers, with his sons in 1853.
Bentwood furniture dates as far back as the Middle Ages, but it is the 19th-century cabinetmaker Thonet who is most often associated with this now-classic technique. Thonet in 1856 patented a method for bending solid wood through the use of steam, and from there, the bentwood look skyrocketed to furniture fame. The works of renowned mid-century modern designers such as Alvar Aalto, Arne Jacobsen, and Charles and Ray Eames that put this technological advancement to use would not be as extensive or celebrated were it not for the efforts of the pioneering Thonet.
Considered the world’s oldest mass-produced chair, Michael Thonet’s ubiquitous Chair No. 14 demonstrated that his patented bentwood technology made it possible to efficiently produce furniture on an industrial scale. Now known as the 214, it won the German Sustainability Award Design for 2021, a recognition of the company’s commitment to environmentally responsible production.
Often called the Coffee House chair — the company’s first substantial order was for a Viennese coffeehouse — the No. 14 remains an icon. Thonet originally designed the chair in 1859, and it is considered the starting point for modern furniture.
The bentwood process opened doors — there were investments in machinery and new industrial processes, and the business began mass-producing furniture. By the end of the 1850s, there were additional Thonet workshops in Eastern Europe and hundreds of employees. Michael Thonet’s reputation attracted the attention of notable architects including Otto Wagner, Marcel Breuer and Ludwig Mies van der Rohe.
The No. 14 was followed by the No. 18, or the Bistro chair, in 1867, and the 209, or the Architect’s chair, of which Le Corbusier was a fan. (The influential Swiss-French architect and designer used Thonet furniture in his Pavillon de l’Esprit Nouveau at the 1925 International Exposition of Decorative Arts in Paris.)
Thonet’s chair designs also appeared in artwork by Toulouse-Lautrec, John Sloan and Henri Matisse in his Interior with a Violin Case. The noteworthy Thonet rocking chair remains a marvel of construction — in the middle of the 19th century, Michael produced a series of rockers in which the different curved parts were integrated into fluid, sinuous wholes. Thanks to Thonet, the humble rocker acquired something unexpected: style. It was captured in the paintings of Pablo Picasso, Pierre-Auguste Renoir and James Tissot.
Thonet is currently split into global divisions. Thonet Industries U.S.A. was acquired in 1987 by Shelby Williams and joined the CF Group in 1999, while the Thonet brand in Germany is owned by Thonet GmbH.
Find a collection of antique Thonet furniture on 1stDibs.
- ShippingRetrieving quote...Ships From: Berlin, Germany
- Return PolicyA return for this item may be initiated within 7 days of delivery.
- Small Bauhaus Tubular Steel Desk, Oak Veneer and Chromium Plated Metal c 1930By Marcel BreuerLocated in Berlin, DESmall Bauhaus tubular steel desk, so-called 'typewriter desk', with 4 drawers. The desk is made of chromed tubular steel and oak-veneered wood. Germany/ Czechoslovakia/ Austria, circ...Category
Vintage 1930s German Bauhaus Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsChrome
- Modernist Tubular Steel Desk, Stained Wood, Chromium Plated Metall, c. 1930By Robert SlezákLocated in Berlin, DEModernist tubular steel desk model PS 10, stained wood, chromium plated metal, c. 1930. The wood finish can be customized. This desk is restored on request, delivery time 8-10 weeks.Category
2010s Czech Bauhaus Desks
MaterialsMetal, Chrome
- Bauhaus Tubular Steel Desk by André Lurçat, Manufactured by Thonet, circa. 1935By André LurcatLocated in Berlin, DEBauhaus tubular steel desk designed by André Lurçat and probably manufactured by Thonet. Chrome plated tubular steel, stained oak veneer, circa 1930.Category
Vintage 1930s German Bauhaus Desks
MaterialsMetal, Chrome
- Bauhaus Tubular Steel End Table With Drawer, Chromed Metal, Veneered Wood, 1930By ThonetLocated in Berlin, DEBauhaus chrome plated tubular steel end table with one drawer. This table model T9 was designed and manufactured by Thonet, circa 1930 This ...Category
2010s German Bauhaus End Tables
MaterialsMetal, Chrome
- Thonet S 411 Tubular Steel Cantilever Armchair, Germany, circa 1935By ThonetLocated in Berlin, DEThonet S 411 tubular steel cantilever armchair with fabric upholstery, designed by the Thonet Company in 1932. This original tubular steel cantilever armch...Category
Vintage 1930s German Streamlined Moderne Armchairs
MaterialsSteel, Chrome
- Modernist Thonet A 745/F Armchair manufactured by Tatra, Stained Wood, c. 1930By Thonet, TatraLocated in Berlin, DEModernist armchair modell A 745/F in stained bentwood designed by Thonet and manufactured under Thonet licence by Tatra, Slovakia, c. 1930.Category
Vintage 1930s Slovak Modern Armchairs
MaterialsBentwood
- Sensational Bauhaus Avant-garde tubular steel writing desk by Bruno Weil (BeWe)By Bruno WeilLocated in PRAHA 4, CZUnleash Creativity with the 1936 Bauhaus Avant-garde Writing Desk by Bruno Weil Step into the world of Bauhaus design with our sensational 1936 Avant-garde Tubular Steel Writing Des...Category
Vintage 1930s German Bauhaus Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsSteel
- Bauhaus Tubular Steel and Wood Desk, Germany, 1930sLocated in Praha 2, Hlavní město PrahaBauhaus tubular steel and wood desk, made in Germany, 1930s. Date of manufacture: 1930s Origin: Germany Material: Chrome-plated steel, Wood Dime...Category
Vintage 1930s German Bauhaus Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsSteel, Chrome
- Functionalist Desk Czech Bauhaus Tubular Steel, 1930sLocated in Wien, ATThis functionalist desk, with a construction of bent tubular steel was made in Czech Republic during the 1930s. The original chrome has been polishe...Category
Mid-20th Century Czech Bauhaus Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsSteel
- Bauhaus tubular steel writing deskBy Bauhaus DeutschlandLocated in PRAHA 4, CZThe offered tubular steel Bauhaus writing desk impresses with its hight class design. It has been professionally refurbished and is free of any defects and ready for a daily use. An ...Category
Vintage 1930s German Bauhaus Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsSteel
- Restored Bauhaus Writing Desk, Oak, Chrome-Plated Steel, Germany, 1930sLocated in Horomerice, CZDesk dimensions: Height: 79 cm (31.1 in) Width: 110 cm (43.3 in) Depth: 63 cm (24.8 in) Leg space: Height: 74 cm (29.1 in) Width: 68 cm (26.8 in) Made according to the design of Ma...Category
Early 20th Century German Bauhaus Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsSteel, Chrome
- Bauhaus Large Desk in Wood and Tubular Metal, circa 1930By Elmar BerkovichLocated in Barcelona, BarcelonaPresented here is an exquisite Bauhaus desk, designed by an unknown designer and manufactured in the Netherlands circa 1930. This rare piece embodies the essence of Bauhaus design wi...Category
Vintage 1930s Dutch Mid-Century Modern Desks and Writing Tables
MaterialsWood