A small family business, established in June 1956
James of St Albans was established by Lionel James in June 1956 and is carried on today by his son and daughter. In the middle 1950s, when St Albans was a major antique centre, James of St Albans focused on selling period antique furniture, porcelain, artwork and metalware.
The business has weathered many changes and fashion trends, and today sells a mixture of antique and collectable items alongside decorative retail goods. 2026 marks our 70th anniversary on George Street — pay us a visit next time you're in St Albans, our stock is vast, varied, and always changing.
Plan your visit
Two doors into the world of James of St Albans
Whether you're hunting for a spectacular fossil or need old table tops relined in leather and gold, we can help.
Antiques & Collectables
Fossils, antiquarian maps and prints, Poole and Anita Harris pottery, Winstanley cats, pewter, Tiffany-style lamps and much more.
Table Lining
The hard-to-find service of laying, tooling and gold embossing leather tops for tables, desks and lap boxes.
Have Something To Sell?
We're always happy to hear about antique and interesting items, though please bear in mind that current stock levels mean we can only take on a small number of pieces.
Fossils that make the ultimate antique gift
People are always surprised how modest our starting prices are for an item of such enormous age. A beautifully cut and polished Madagascan Ammonite, over 150 million years old, makes a wonderful gift — especially for a landmark birthday. We are strict about what we buy, so every fossil we sell is a genuine specimen.