Buying a piece of history
Having opened in 1898, Cohen & Sons spans three centuries and five generations of ownership, making it the oldest family-owned business of any kind in the United States. The shop started out as an antiques emporium, but because of grandson Jimmie’s passion for vintage weaponry and rare currency, the armoires and rugs were gradually pushed out, nudging the store into the fantastic specialized store you’ll find today.
Jimmie’s fervor for swords, guns, and especially coins was sparked when a customer showed up one day with a Confederate half dollar, originally struck in 1861 at the New Orleans Mint—one of only four such coins in the world. Jimmie carried the treasured coin in his pocket for weeks, checking it constantly. He finally sold it for a hefty five-figure price, making him a star among numismatics. Today the coin is worth over $1 million.
Info
Address 437 Royal Street, New Orleans, LA 70130, +1 504.522.3305, www.shop.cohenantiques.com | Hours Mon–Sat 9:30am–5pm| Tip The building that houses Cohen & Sons is the former home of a Creole apothecary owned by Antoine Amedee Peychaud. Peychaud used to treat friends to homemade brandy toddies, which he prepared using a jigger, then known as a coquetier. The word became bastardized into “cocktail.” Thus, on this spot where you can today buy a pistol, the world’s first cocktail was born.
Now in their 60s, Jimmie’s sons, Steve and Jerry, began working in the store after school and on weekends when they were kids. The Cohens took the boys on the road to trade shows and antiquing in Europe, instilling in them a sense of history and an eye for spotting rare and exceptional relics. If you bring Steve and Jerry any coin, sword, or antique rifle, you’ll receive a PhD-worthy thesis on the object.
Cohen & Sons also provides a home for Don Weil’s marvelous creations. For many years, Mr. Weil ran a shop (now closed) in the French Quarter called Le Petit Soldier, where you could buy tiny metal Civil War soldiers or members of the Roman Guard. But most appealing were little Marie Laveaus, Mardi Gras Indians, and a figure of Napoleon and Josephine holding hands, seated on a couch.
You can buy the tin figurines as well as antique weaponry and currency online. Though it feels a little weird to have a $3000 French mounted breastplate or a $5000 uncut sheet of Confederate 10-dollar notes as items you can just “Add to Cart.”
Nearby
Back
To the online map