Wilde + Spieth Vintage Furniture and Design

Founded in Esslingen am Neckar (Baden-Württemberg) in 1831, Wilde and Spieth is one of the oldest continuously operating German furniture manufacturers. For almost two centuries, the company has produced seating furniture using industrial wood processing, and its collaboration with Egon Eiermann from 1949 onwards significantly shaped German post-war furniture design.

The most famous Wilde and Spieth classic is the SE 68 chair (1951) by Egon Eiermann: a three-legged, stackable shell chair made of bent plywood beech or oak with a curved tubular steel base, which has been one of the defining German post-war seating furniture pieces for over seven decades. Other key Eiermann designs for Wilde and Spieth include the SE 119 (1955, with a wooden frame), the SE 121 (conference chair, 1959), the SE 42 (1949), and the SE 79. Materials used are bent plywood beech and oak, chrome-plated tubular steel, painted steel, and more recently, upholstery fabrics for padded variants.

In the vintage market, original Eiermann editions from the 1950s to the 70s are particularly sought after, especially early SE-68 chairs with original plywood patina and intact tubular steel bases. When inspecting a piece, look for the burned or stamped Wilde and Spieth branding on the underside of the seat (often with model number SE 68 etc.), the characteristic original plywood molding, and intact chrome plating on the tubular steel without flaking rust.