Earlier today, we looked at London-style ghoulishness (see Tablescapes: Ben Pentreath's Cabinet of Curiosities). For San Franciscans who gravitate toward the bizarre and macabre, there's Paxton Gate. Located in the city's Mission District, the store offers an eclectic mix of what is described as "treasures and oddities inspired by the garden and the natural sciences." It's like wandering through a Victorian scientist's study, with plenty of skulls and taxidermy to marvel at mixed in with practical items for the home and garden. Owner Sean Quigley also presides over the companion kids' store, Paxton Gate's Curiosities for Kids, down the street; the latest branch on the shop's evolutionary tree is Paxton Gate in Portland, Oregon.
Photography by Mimi Giboin for Remodelista.
Above: The Paxton Gate storefront on Valencia Street.
Above: A griffin (a baboon with turkey wings) overlooks an assortment of ram, coyote, bobcat, and muskrat bones.
Above: Equilateral triangle Birdhouse made from stoneware clay slabs with a dark metallic glaze; $130.
Above: Framed Butterflies (other insects, including beetles, butterflies, and tarantulas are available); prices start at $25.
Above L: The Trook Tree Magnet is $12.50. Above R: Trook Tree Hooks are $10 each.
Above: A ram's skull by a genie's lamp.
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