On the Road — Columbus Antique Mall

If you are in Columbus, Ohio, German Village is an excellent place to visit. It’s a historic district filled with 19th-century brick homes and buildings. Attractions include Franklin Art Glass Studios, The Book Loft independent bookstore and brewery district. And just outside Schiller Park, a short distance from restaurants and cafes, you will find the Greater Columbus Antique Mall (1045 S. High St., 614-443-7858.)

The mall is a Victorian house with five floors filled with antiques for sale. Even if you’re not planning to buy anything, it’s a fantastic (and dog-friendly) place to visit, with seemingly endless displays of nearly anything you might want to collect. Some pieces are displayed on antique furniture (also for sale); with toys, lamps and books on top of desks or costume jewelry spilling out of open drawers. Others are in glass cabinets. Some are unlocked, encouraging customers to open them; others, the helpful staff will unlock if you ask.

You’ll find shelves of glassware, racks of vintage clothes, boxes of paper ephemera and stacks of architectural elements. Alcoves feel like hidden rooms. Stairwells are lined with prints, photographs and advertisements for sale. Antique appliances command attention. Fortunately, they’re usually labeled, or else their purposes might remain mysteries. Need a wallpaper cutter, perm machine or bonnet hair dryer? You can find one here!

Here are just a few of the things you might find.

A view of the outside, Greater Columbus Antique Mall

 

Spalding tennis racquet, $20. The frame keeps the wood from warping— no longer necessary for today’s racquets made of other materials.

 

Treasure trove of costume jewelry.

 

Some treasures are under your feet, like this World’s Fair rug, $50.

 

Apparently it’s Christmas year-round!

 

Lady Schick Consolette hair dryer in working condition, $24.

 

As any collector knows, bookshelves aren’t just for books!

 

Skirt and dress hem marker that uses an atomizer to spray chalk dust, $10.

 

Cradle telephone, 1930s, $265.

 

And don’t forget to look up! Glass lamps and shades hang from the ceiling.