What we carry · 08

Statuary & Altar

An altar is a surface that means something — that's the whole requirement. A shelf, a windowsill, the top of a dresser. Every tradition we serve builds them differently, and this part of the shop furnishes all of those differences without ranking them.

The statuary runs the widest of any shelf we keep: Greek, Egyptian, Norse and Celtic deities; Hindu and Buddhist figures; angels, archangels and saints; Green Men, dragons, fairies and the occasional wizard. Cast bronze, carved stone, painted resin — at prices from pocket-money to centerpiece.

Around the figures, the furniture of practice: athames, wands and chalices for ceremonial and Wiccan work; amulets and talismans; tapestries, scarves and sarongs that become altar cloths the moment you decide they are. Greeting cards and stickers live here too — inspirational, humorous, and LGBT-friendly, as the shop has been all along.

If you're building a first altar, the honest advice is: start with one object that matters and let the rest accrete. It will. Ours did — the shop is basically a forty-year-old altar with a cash register.

Common questions

What do I need to set up an altar?

Nothing but intention and a surface. Common additions across traditions are a candle, an image or statue of the tradition's focus, something from nature, and a cloth — all optional, all available at the shop.