A magic treasure in the heart of Rome

Eclectica’s – Collector’s shop: An American freak show in Rome!

It is your first time in Rome. You have sightseen all day with your guide, you have discovered the main beauties of the Eternal City and you have finally seen those magnificent monuments you dreamed of while watching movies and TV spots. Now you want to find out the hidden secrets of this enchanting city, you want to discover those places that no one knows about.

You want to go off the beaten track and you start wandering through the narrow streets of Rome. Suddenly, you find yourself in front of the Pantheon.

Pantheon square:

Shopping here is nearly impossible. There is Via del Corso just few meters away for that. Here, between the Pantheon and Montecitorio, people get fascinated by the rounded temple built during the I century AD.

In the exact moment you enter Piazza della Rotonda you get catapulted in a world characterized by engaging atmospheres, you get embraced by a vortex of splendid amazement and you find yourself side by side with passionate pilgrims who came to visit Raffaello’s grave, photographers from all over the world who are trying to freeze in one photo the unique details of the area and tourists who are simply intrigued by Rome.

Outside the Pantheon there is space for little: a delicious coffee slush with whipped cream at the Bar Tazza d’Oro in Via degli Orfani, some souvenir shops, a sip of fresh water from the many drinking fountains and then it looks like there’s nothing more to see. Nothing could be more wrong.

The hidden treasure:

Just few steps away, there is a hidden treasure waiting to be found. We could define it as a simple antique dealer while distractingly passing in front of it. But, once you’re in front of its bizarre window and you focus a bit more on it, it is impossible not to get distracted, caught and finally surprised.  

Your eyes will lay on a mannequin dressed like Mandrake: top hat, white gloves and dinner jacket. At this point, if your gaze will ask for more – and it will! – it will find anything but magic cards, skulls, crystal balls and all the inventory an illusionist should have. Eclectica – collector’s shop: this is what you’ll read on its sign. As the name suggests, this is not just a simple magic store.

Eclectica’s shop:

In the deliberate chaos that dominates the little shop it is easy to get lost! The space-time theory will be destroyed: 3 minutes will suddenly become one hour and you won’t even realize it! Each single inch of the store is covered with a certain mysterious object. It looks like a vintage circus, an American freak show, a place perfect for a Samurai or the house of an old English dolls-collector ma’am…all together!

weirdbizarrestrange corner in the historic center of Rome. Eclectica is a continuous surprise. Beside the original products it sells, it also organizes magic classes. And then you realize everything: you had to visit Rome to realize your dream of becoming a wizard!

Here, in Via Aquiro, this magic corner really exists and it is not a hallucination nor an optical illusion caused by the soft and amazing curves of the Pantheon!

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