De Sede DS-47 Sofa Set, Two-Seater and Three-Seater in Bull Neck Leather

A complete DS-47 set — the two-seater and three-seater together — is the kind of find that makes vintage furniture hunting worthwhile. Both sofas date from 1976, both are upholstered in De Sede's legendary five-millimetre-thick bull neck leather, and both have developed their patina together over nearly fifty years in the same space.

The matching quality is what elevates this set from two individual sofas to a genuine collector's proposition. The leather on both pieces shares the same tonal range, the same depth of patina, the same quality of sculptural creasing that defines the DS-47. The two-seater at 143 centimetres and the three-seater at 180 centimetres create a balanced seating arrangement that fills a living room with the unmistakable presence of thick, natural hide.

Both sofas are in good vintage condition. The leather shows honest wear including surface staining — marks that are entirely consistent with the nature of thick neck leather designed to age and develop over time. The structures are solid throughout, proportions remain true, and the sofas sit as they should with seat heights of 40 centimetres and backrests at 72.

De Sede introduced the DS-47 and their neck leather programme simultaneously in 1976, marking a deliberate turn toward material extremes in luxury furniture. The five-millimetre-thick hide — sourced from the bull's neck, the strongest and thickest part of the animal — was unprecedented in upholstered furniture. Each DS-47 required significantly more material and handwork than conventional sofas, making matched sets particularly scarce on the vintage market.

Together, these two sofas create an atmosphere that cannot be achieved any other way. The weight, warmth and sculptural beauty of bull neck leather, doubled. A living room centred around this set becomes a space defined by material honesty and Swiss craftsmanship at its most uncompromising.