An Essential Guide to Antiquing in Stockholm

This is reflected in Stockholm’s antiquing scene which is full to the brim of exquisite shops to find all kinds of exciting treasures—from bargain finds tucked away in the back of secondhand shops to luxurious purchases from specialist shops curated by experts.

While there is, of course, more to Stockholm than just the center, with all kinds of fantastic places further afield than the stretch from Vasastan down to Sodermalm, this central hub holds the majority of Stockholm’s gold mines for finding antiques, so we’ve highlighted here some of the best places to check out in Vasastan, Ostermalm, Gamla Stan, and finally, Sodermalm.

Beginning in the north of the city, Vasastan is a beautiful part of town full of great places to peruse. A good place to start is Upplandsgatan, where you will find two excellent shops to kick off your day. HB Antique & Quriosashopen has a wonderfully eclectic and varied collection—it’s the kind of place where you can spend hours searching and exploring. Right next door is Bacchus Antik, which is a more clean and neat store with a great range of furniture and pottery and as a very bright and open shop, it feels relaxing and calming to be inside.

Just a few streets over, on Odenplan, is Mormors spegel, which means Grandma’s mirror, and the shop really feels like it could be the quirky collection of an elderly relative. It is full to the brim of all manner of items, so it’s fantastic if you just want to browse or are looking for inspiration. Vasastan straddles the line between a bargain hunter’s paradise and a place for people looking for slightly more exclusive items, which makes it a great place to start.

Ostermalm, on the other hand, is more clear in its antique’s identity; it is the place to go if you are looking for luxurious boutiques and gorgeous items ranging from pottery to furniture to art. Ostermalm has two of the best antique auction houses in Stockholm, Stockholm Auction House and Bukowskis. These are fantastic places to go if you are looking for something really unusual, specific, or valuable.

Sibyllegatan is perhaps the best street to begin on in terms of shops. Sibyllegatan, Linnegatan, Kommendorsgatan, and Nybrogatan together create a square with a range of great shops to check out. Sjöström antiques very carefully curate their collection of furniture, lighting, jewelry, and ceramics, to create a store that feels very exclusive. A few doors down is Rehns Antikhandel which, like Sjostrom, has the same exclusive and hand-curated collection which consists mostly of international antiques and interior design pieces. It owners say that the one thing all the items have in common is that they are fond of them, highlighting the personal touch that makes the store unique.

Also on Sibyllegatan is JP Willborg, which sells antique oriental rugs. On Linnegatan is the utterly stunning L Edelstam, which deals in art and antiques. Their collection has a range of items but its main focus is on pieces from the Swedish grace period of design from the early 20th century. Turning onto Nybrogatan will allow you to visit Ostindiska Kompaniet, which sells antique items from the Orient, specializing in Chinese porcelain and oriental art, as well as Svenska Rum, a specialist furniture shop. Ostermalm is full of excellent stores and really is the best place to go for anyone with a real passion for antiques.

Further south is Gamla Stan, the old city, characterized by its winding narrow streets and old buildings, Gamla Stan has a couple of standout shops for any antique hunters. Brinken is one of the most well-known antique shops on Gamla Stan, with a very wide collection and a lovely location right by the Royal Palace. From there, you have Runsten and Kronan, which is a particularly good spot for crystal figures, as well as antique Darlana horses, a wooden carved statuette that has become one of Sweden’s symbols.

For anyone looking for retro or antique lights, Gamla Stan has the best shop in the whole of Stockholm. Affaren is one one of the main streets in Gamla Stan, Stora Nygatan, and has everything from huge standing lamps to tiny desk lights. Another specialist shop in Gamla Stan is Fartygsmagasinet on Osterlanggatan, which focuses on nautical and maritime antiques, making it a great place to pick up something for anyone with a boat or an interest in the sea. Gamla Stan combines a good collection of stores with a fantastic environment, as you may very well walk past a building that used to host the antiques you are purchasing.

Finally, Sodermalm is more usually associated with cool bars and pop up shops than high-class antiques but there are some shops that are worth checking out here. Inredning-Antikt och Klassiskt on Hornsgatan has a brilliant collection of antique rugs, making it a great place to start. Further along Hornsgatan is Elektriska Svea which runs close to Affaren as the place to shop for antique lighting.

Keep going and you’ll come to Brandstationen, a shop that focuses on jewelry interiors, watches, and other accessories housed in an old fire station that is over 100 years old. Finally on Hornsgatan, Gubbens Antiks is a superb place for anyone interested in ceramics, they have a particularly good collection of items by the Swedish artist Lisa Larson.

Stepping away from Hornsgatan down to the south part of Sodermalm, there is an excellent antique furniture shop called M&L Antik on Södermannagatan as well as Soderklenoden on Ringvagen which has a wide variety of different antiques.

Stockholm’s antique scene is very wide and varied, providing a range of different items, types of shops, and specialties. Stockholm is a perfect place to come if you are searching for something very specific or if you are hoping to stumble upon something special. Like the city itself Stockholm’s antique scene is eclectic and well worth exploring.