Charms tell the story of the world

If it were possible to travel to the past, one would have to visit Els Petits Encants first. In fact, it would be essential. The shop in Basses de Sant Pere in Barcelona, run for twenty years by Francesc Raich i Puig, is a true institution in the Ribera neighborhood, an emblematic, beloved space, an oasis, a watchtower, a place to get lost for hours. All at once. Everything is objects from the past, as is the custom in these fascinating and fabulous places we call encants.

Objects with history, that is what has always obsessed Francesc. To discover, to investigate, to ask about the history that object has lived until it reached his hands. Who did it belong to, where was it, who did it serve? Had that ceiling light illuminated a humble house or one rather well-off? That modernist forging, what balcony had it supported? Did that wall clock keep good time or was it always running late? Where did those bullfighting magazines appear? Why were those coins hidden behind a false wall? Knowing the history of an object is a treasure, a source of wisdom and knowledge that, moreover, can be transmitted and allows anyone who wishes to enrich themselves on any subject. And at Els Petits Encants, there are plenty of different subjects to be had.

Francesc's curiosity started at a very young age. At his grandparents' house, he already felt a passion for antique objects. For a tin box, for a set of tools, for some rusty nails. He became an agricultural technician and had a rabbit farm near Vilafranca del Penedès until the early 2000s. There he was already accumulating everything, and a lot of it. Machines of all kinds, furniture, various paperwork, clocks, motors... It's impossible for him to list it all. Until in 2004 he was able to acquire the premises next to the Arc de Triomf to open a junk shop. This is how he defines himself, a junk dealer, not an antique dealer. A junk dealer, that profession which consists of knowing all the secrets of the antique object, not necessarily a very valuable one. Knowing that a washbasin and a jug as a pair are synonymous with the way people used to wash their faces and hands. Knowing that a razor and a shaving foam stick were present in all bathrooms in the world. Knowing that a military helmet can be used to explain a war, a conflict, or a political regime. Knowing that postcards contain infinite lives camouflaged on the back, in the handwritten letter and in the postmark. Also that glassware or home tableware can reveal a social class, and that a cinema poster keeps dreams, longings, and fantasies adhered to it.

Francesc is a junk dealer, a salesman, a prescriber, and also a bit of a psychologist. He can sell you whatever you want. Also all kinds of costume jewelry, hats, typewriters, cameras, games, and musical instruments. He also repairs lamps, clocks, and record players. He shows us the small workshop and the countless nooks and crannies full of piled-up things, making it almost impossible to move around. All sorts of people come into the shop. Long-time neighborhood residents, regular customers for whom visiting the shop is already just another routine, and foreigners and tourists who are captivated and seduced by all the offerings they find there. There are those who buy something there every week: a blotter, a lamp, a map, a poster, or a vase. There are religious images everywhere. They never end. We also stumble upon toys, trophies, ships, pens, lighters, frames, tools, fans, stoves, all kinds of ceramics, old siphons, telephones, vinyl records...

A few weeks ago, Francesc sold an old telephone to a school. One of those where you had to turn a dial to dial the numbers. An object that surely must have been used to give a very good history lesson. A slice of past everyday life that explains who we were and where we are now. There are thousands of these kinds of stories at Els Petits Encants. It's worth going in and rescuing them.