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Antiques
Mérida
Antiques
By Working Gringos on May 13, 2007,
Topic: Yucatan
Survivor
If
you’re expecting to find huge antique stores in Merida like the ones you
know back home, you are likely to be disappointed. The business of buying
and selling antiques here is not a time-honored practice. Yes, around the
early 20th Century, Merida was swimming in money, and people imported and
built a lot of beautiful furniture and fixtures. They also imported and
created many works of art. But these beautiful things are mostly kept in
the family. Any antiques that were put on the market were instantly snapped
up, either by people renovating and furnishing the haciendas, or by exporters
who took them out of Yucatan and into the U.S. or Europe. Most modern Yucatecos
have been more interested in new things, from houses to the furniture that
goes into them, so local demand for antiques has not been strong either.
Of course these conditions, like everything else
around here, are changing. The expatriate Norteamericanos and Europeans
who have been moving here are hungry for beautiful old things. And gradually,
there are more and more people willing to let go of those things, for a
price of course. So it follows that there are people starting businesses
to gather and sell them.
We’re building a new home in the style of the old colonials, using local
materials and following many traditional construction practices. Our house
will have high ceilings, mosaico floor tiles, stone, wrought iron, columns
and arches. When we are including wood in our design, such as in doors
and windows, we are looking for old pieces that we can refurbish and reuse.
It seems to us that this both lends our new house a feeling of history
and it allows us to recycle and reuse these beautiful hardwoods instead
of cutting down new trees. Plus, it’s fun to hunt for them!
In addition to the old local doors, there are a
few places in town that import pieces from other countries that either
look old or really are old, which work well for our lifestyle and this
climate.
In our experience, Merida’s antique dealers are
honest and enjoyable to deal with. Many of them can restore the pieces
you buy. Most of them will also deliver your purchases for a small extra
charge.
As usual, we’re sure our list is not complete.
If you know of a good place that we should add, please leave a comment
or email us! Also, as you’ll see, some of these places do not appear to
even have names. We will attempt to add photos over the next few weeks
to make them more recognizable, so check back. We’re providing you with
addresses and phone numbers if we have them, but directions? You didn’t
think we were going to make it THAT easy, did you?
Of course, finding old architectural pieces is not a science, it’s an art.
And it depends a lot on serendipity, timing and your pocketbook. Despite
the fact that by telling you where to find a window frame or colonial door
we are increasing the competition for these precious things, we think a
healthy market for antiques will only serve to support the current antique
sellers and possibly encourage more to surface. And so, with no further
ado…
El Bazar
a.k.a. Dr. Guzman’s House
Dr. Roberto Guzman is handsome, cultured and gracious.
He has a fine eye for good antiques and probably carries the most dependably
beautiful and valuable antiques in town. He has connections with many of
the old families and often has goods on consignment. His store is in a
house next door to the house he lives in. It has everything from doors
to furniture to santos to paintings. The house itself is an antique, as
he gathered pieces from many old houses in the area that were torn down
and incorporated them into the house that is his store. Be sure to appreciate
the old tiled kitchen under the beautiful stone arch. It is probably worth
noting that of all the antique dealers we have met here so far, Dr. Guzman
is probably the only one who speaks English.
Location: Calle 19 #201-D x 22 y 24, Col.
García Gineres
Hours: Mon thru Fri, 9 AM to 1 PM and 5
PM to 8 PM; Sat 9 AM to 1 PM
Cel: 044-999-157-6636
Antiguedades Jorge
Proprietor: Jorge I. Vázquez Gomez
Jorge’s store is in two large bodegas behind his
house. He also can usually be found in Parque Santa Lucia on Sunday mornings
until about noon. Jorge is a scavenger supreme and has many wonderful old
things that other people might not think to pick up. Need an old lock?
Maybe you’d like some old pharmaceutical bottles? A rusty old tricycle?
How about an old Mayan doll? A lantern? Jorge probably has it. And old
hammock hooks, nails, screws, door pulls, chains, floor tiles. You probably
won’t find refined antiques at Jorge’s, but you might find an old pipe
stand that reminds you of your grandfather.
Location: Calle 21 Loe 4 Bis x 38 y 38-A,
Col. San Pedro Uxmal, Chuburná
Hours: Whenever you can catch him
Cel: 044-999-163-6596
Antiguedades by Julio
Proprietor: Julio Alfaro Bates
Julio’s old store was in a rundown colonial that
made it hard to tell the building from the junk. His new store is a big
old corner colonial building that is so full of things, it is still hard
to see some of what’s there, but at least it isn’t in any danger of falling
down. Julio specializes in furniture and he employs a crew that is wonderful
at restoring the furniture he finds. Behind the house, you’ll find doors,
statues, tiles and stone for your perusing pleasure. Julio can also usually
be found in Parque Santa Lucia on Sunday morning. Besides "buying" and
"selling", his card advertises "restoration" and "valuation". If you are
looking for a beautiful piece and didn’t find it at Guzman’s, Julio should
probably be your next stop.
Location: Calle 75 at Calle 72, across
from Parque San Sebastian
Hours: He seems to be open most days, normal
business hours
Cel: 044-999-151-9030
Luna del Oriente
Proprietor: Jeff and Deb Ullrich
If you aren’t married to the idea of Mexican or
Yucatecan antiques, but just want something old and beautiful, the new
kid in town is Luna del Oriente. Jeff and Deb are Asia-philes who have
traveled and lived in Asia, speak Chinese and paid a lot of attention during
history lessons. They go through a lot of pain, heartache, travel and aduana
(Customs) meetings so that we can have beautiful Chinese armoires and Indian
headboards here in Merida. They are also building custom doors from wood
reclaimed in those countries, as well as reclaiming doors from old buildings.
The furniture and doors that they have for sale are mostly from tropical
climates originally, so they are well suited to our architecture and environment.
New shipments are always coming in, so check back often.
Location: On Calle 65 just east of Calle
68 on the north side of the street, Col. Centro
Hours: Call for an appointment for now
Cel: 999-247-2953
Bazar Bagdag
Proprietor: Israel Koh Bonilla
This old store just recently decided to have a
name (which we suspect is supposed to be "Bagdad" but we’re just reporting
what’s printed on the business card). It was right down the street from
where we used to live, and we have enjoyed watching over the years the
various treasures and junk that Israel has managed to scrounge up from
around the area. He has a good eye for kitsch as well as quality, and you’ll
find everything from a solid armoire to an old maiden aunt’s fur stole.
You just never know what you’re going to find, so it pays to drop by often.
Location: Calle 49 #504 x 62 y 60, Col.
Centro
Hours: Yes
Cel: 044-999-139-9508
The Antique Lot
Proprietor: Luis Herrera Peréz
This place has no name, so we’ve just given it
one. Luis and his associates have an open lot where they store the things
they find in their constant forays. In our latest visit we found old glass
water bottles, sewing machine tables, a few French roof tiles, protectores,
doors, stone statues, school desks and a whole lot more. Luis has a regular
stock of wooden furniture (tables, roperos, vitrines, etc.) that he restores
on site. He also sometimes makes things to order. Recently he had some
lovely carved floor easels that we thought were a little expensive, but
awfully pretty. Hmmm… maybe we should go back. Another time he had a huge
stone fountain with a carved head from which the water flowed. Mysterious
and obviously very old. It was gone in less than two weeks.
Location: The corner of Calle 50 and Calle
81, Col. Centro
Hours: Most days
Cel: We don’t have a number for Luis. It’s
best to just show up.
Cecelia’s Place
Proprietor: Cecelia and her son
Again, a place with no apparent name. But if you
love to look for diamonds in the rough, then this will be fun. Cecelia
has a huge room full of junk, and more in the driveway on the side. A few
things up front are dusted off, but mostly you are on your own. Out front
she sells old books to passers by, but if you ask permission, you can walk
around in the back. You may discover old magazines, chamber pots, record
albums, chotchkes, soda bottles, textbooks… and a lot of dust. A list of
things we’ve bought at Cecelia’s? Old watch springs, a minature Coca Cola
bottle with coke in it, a miniature rooster, a few old books, a wooden
vitrine for our Day of the Dead altar, two small handmade wooden chairs,
and a little wooden side table that we had to throw out a year later because
it was rotting away. Fun!
Location: On Calle 61 just east of Calle
64 on the south side of the street, Col. Centro
Hours: Weekdays, about 10 AM to 5 PM, but
no promises
Cel: No idea. Frankly, we’re not even sure
her name is Cecelia.
Vintage
Proprietor: Arq. Maria José Cetina Cachón
We were so pleased to see this store open when
it did, about two years ago now. The owner is a young woman who appreciates
the Retro style and has gone about combing the local area for antiques
and mementos of the mid 20th Century. We walked in there the first time
and saw our first transistor radio from the 1960’s. There is a section
of the store that has clothes, both new and used. And there are some new
things of a retro design. But there are some wonderful old things too.
And we especially love how she integrated the old mosaicos into the floor
of the store… very whimsical and different.
Location: Calle 60 #428 x 47 y 49, Col.
Centro
Hours: Mon-Fri 10 AM to 2 PM, 5 PM to 8
PM, Sat 10 AM to 2 PM, 5 PM to 9 PM
Phone: 924-4542
Other Places to check out: (thanks to our
readers for the suggestions)
Alberto’s Continental - Yes, its a restaurant
but Alberto also sells antiques. Just ask! Located at the corner of Calle
57 and Calle 66.
Gran Hotel - Downstairs on Calle 60 between
Calle 59 and 61 is an antique store.
Information Courtesy of Yucatan
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