The main shopping districts center on specialty shops on Chapel and Thistle streets and on the well-known chains on George and Union streets. Of interest to collectors, Colin Wood, 25 Rose St. (tel. 01224/643-019), stocks furniture, wall clocks, and grandfather clocks from the 17th to the early 20th centuries. Its specialty, however, is maps from the Elizabethan through the Victorian eras. The shop also sells 17th- to early-20th-century prints of northern Scotland. You may also want to browse through the eclectic mix of bric-a-brac antiques at Elizabeth Watts Studio, 69 Thistle St. (tel. 01224/647-232), where items include glass, brass, antique jewelry, china, silver, and a few small furniture pieces. The shop is actually best known for its china and glass restoration studio. For one-stop gift shopping, drop in at Nova, 20 Chapel St. (tel. 01224/643-607), which stocks china, silver jewelry, rugs, clothing, toys, cards, and gift paper.
To trace your Scottish ancestry, go to the Aberdeen Family History Shop, 164 King St. (tel. 01224/646-323), where membership to the Aberdeen and North East Family History Society costs £15 ($29) cash, check, or credit card. Once you join, you can go through a vast range of publications kept on hand to help members trace their family histories.
Other noteworthy shops are Grandad's Attic, 12 Marischal St. (tel. 01224/213-699), which specializes in Art Deco ceramics and antique pine furniture; Just Scottish, 4 Upperkirkgate (tel. 01224/621-755), retailers of quality items -- all made in Scotland, including ceramics, knitwear, textiles, silver, and jewelry; and Alex Scott & Co., 43 Schoolhill (tel. 01224/643-924), the town's finest kiltmakers.
