A dresser is a cabinet that holds fine dinnerware such as silver, pewter, or pottery. Dressers first became popular in England during the Tudor period, when they were nothing more than a side table with a series of drawers.

The front was supported by three or five turned (lathe-shaped) legs connected by stretchers. Horizontal planes, such as the top of the dresser and the fronts of the drawers, were adorned with matching moulding. Around 1690, a low backboard with narrow shelves or drawers was introduced, and a decorative shelf under the main drawers was added shortly after. Later, to showcase English delftware, shelves without backs were installed. Up to the nineteenth century, this sort of dresser was a frequent element of the middle-class kitchen.

New designs by Industrial designer Raymond Loewy, Postmodernist Michael Graves, and Contemporary designer Choi Byung Hoon are available at bidsquare’s auction or any online auction site. They provide a large selection of antique dressers and vintage dressers for sale. Online auctions are a good place to look for high-quality vintage and antique dressers if you are planning to buy it.

The dresser has been used in France from the early 16th century. It borrowed architectural elements such as Gothic crockets (ornaments in the form of curled and bending foliage) and panels, reeded strapwork (pattern of narrow fillets or bands folded, crossed, or interlaced), cornices, and entablatures, and was more ornately carved than the English.

It was essentially a cabinet with two doors and a pot board underneath, unlike the English dresser. A similar style was created in Germany, with doors enclosing the bottom section and recessed cabinets with a high cornice enclosing the upper portion.

In the United States, a dresser can refer to a cabinet for storing dishes and culinary equipment, or a chest of drawers or bureau with a mirror for use in the bedroom.