Pair of Octagonal Lucite and Chrome Side Tables, Maison Jansen, France, circa 1970

A pair of octagonal side tables by the celebrated Parisian house Maison Jansen, each presenting a tabletop of clear lucite in an octagonal frame of polished chrome. The translucent tops, supported by four slender chrome legs joined by a lower shelf in matching lucite, create an impression of remarkable lightness while displaying an assured structural solidity. The chromework, executed with the precision and refinement for which Jansen’s mid-century production is celebrated, adds a controlled metallic warmth to the transparent lucite surfaces.

Maison Jansen, founded in Paris in 1880 and renowned across the world for its exacting standards and sweeping stylistic range, embraced the vocabulary of the Space Age in the late 1960s and 1970s with characteristic confidence and mastery. The use of acrylic — then prized for its jewel-like clarity and sculptural versatility — in tandem with polished chrome reflected the firm’s perpetual dialogue between classical tradition and the most advanced contemporary materials. Side tables of this octagonal model, suited to flanking a sofa in matching pairs, were sought by an international clientele desiring furniture that was at once dramatic and discreet.

In very good condition consistent with age, displaying minor surface wear commensurate with half a century of use. The lucite retains excellent clarity. Sold as a pair, these tables are exceptionally versatile — equally effective as side tables flanking a sofa, as bedside tables, or as low occasional tables in a contemporary interior.