Tea tables, sewing tables, side tables, chess tables, tables for music and for games, and the occasional dressing table comprise a variety hardly imaginable by today’s hurried crowds.

What could have led the merchants, professionals and others of the middle and aristocratic classes during the Biedermeier period in Central Europe to lavish so much time and care on relaxation and entertainment? How could they even have managed to keep straight the proper uses of the various specialized pieces?

The first half of 19th century, the Biedermeier period, was a time of quiet after the Napoleonic wars. A change of mood took hold and grew pervasive. People’s lifestyles naturally reflected the shift. Aristocrats and bourgeois families furnished their city dwellings in unpretentious but still elegant fashion.

Aspects of this style included carpets that were soft and colorful, furniture that was comfortable, tables and secretaries that were practical and functional, and walls that were covered with fine decorative wallpaper. The style aimed for a new simplicity. Earlier styles now seemed selfimportant.

Biedermeier accentuated a variety of furniture and a richness of color, bringing out a beauty that is appreciated to this day.

The sitting room always was the most important room. Its center would feature a table with a sofa, chairs and armchairs. Elsewhere, in a visible place, usually by the window, one would find an étagère that exhibited valuable souvenirs, porcelain and glass. The étagère would be elegant simple, comprising open shelves vertically connected with columns. This genius of construction later influenced famous designers of many 20th century, including Josef Hoffmann, Kolo Moser and the Czech cubists.

The secretary was usually the dominant piece of furniture in the sitting room and also the most luxurious one. The bottom of a secretary was a commode or dresser while the upper part contained a panel which folded down to make a writing surface; inside were a number of small drawers and, generally, a central alcove with a secret drawer for letters and valuables. There was usually clock or figurine in the alcove.

The shape of the secretary wasn’t necessarily rectangular; nicer pieces stood on lion’s paws or included an upper part in the shape of a terraced pyramid. The most luxurious ones often took the shape of a lyre.

Chairs presented designers with major challenges, especially the shape of the backrests. Here imagination recognized few limits, producing backrests in the shape of fans, lyres, peacock feathers and vases. Upholstery usually covered only the seat so as not to distract from the rich decoration of the chair backs. This style extended to armchairs and sofas, which together with a chair formed a set.

Another special piece of furniture at the time was the sewing table. Its popularity derived from the new cult of domestic life, sewing and embroidery, which was a favorite activity among high-class ladies. The sewing tables were artful both esthetically and practically.

One highly original design was a globe supported on three slender legs. The upper hemisphere of the globe could be lifted off. Inside were rows of small drawers for sewing supplies and tools. The outside would be richly decorated with different woods inlaid against the veneer.

The Biedermeier style concentrated heavily on the quality, textures and colors of materials used in furniture’s construction. Gold plate and the heavy carved decorations of the previous epoch were out of fashion. Cabinetmakers of the time incorporated noble veneers emphasizing grains and textures of walnut and cherry and, sometimes though more rarely, mahogany.

Builders used intarsia, a form of wood inlays highly developed in Italy in earlier centuries, in the more interesting pieces. They had a mainly oriental character, using palmettos, garlands and stylized flowers for their themes.

Home decorators rediscovered the beauty of Biedermeier in the 1970s. Collectors, designers and lovers of art welcomed its simplicity and elegance. It became fashionable to combine styles. Mixing antique furniture with contemporary design.

The Biedermeier furniture of Central Europe now occupies places of honor in prestigious museums around the world and can be found in the luxury interiors of Paris, London and New York.