The World of Canes at M. Segas

From Classical Canes to Decorative Walking Sticks, M. Segas Has an Impressive Range of Canes:

Paris is full of interesting shops and one of the curious and wonderful shops we checked out was the Segas antique cane shop in the Passage Jouffroy in the 9th arrondissement. M. Segas has been in the cane business for nearly forty  years and in his shop, the world of canes is exposed to you. You don’t have to be of cane-bearing age to appreciate his shop.

More than Just Walking Sticks

These days, canes are associated with walking sticks used by people to aid in keeping balancing, or other practical uses such as hiking sticks or walking poles . However, during the period of the French monarchy, canes were more than just walking sticks – they were very much a fashion accessory donned by the nobility and bourgeoisie. At the court of King Louis XIII, the cane attained great presence and you’ll see many portraits of this monarch with his collection of canes. Imagine the fine quality of these canes whose handles are frequently made of gold, silver or porcelain. By the 17th or 18th century the walking stick became an essential part of a European gentleman’s wardrobe.

Canes have been known to be used as weapons as well, and the sword cane is one such example.

Segas Canes

If you’re interested in canes, Mr. Segas has an impressive collection in his shop, ranging from classical canes to decorative and bejewelled and gold inlaid canes or those that reflect folk art, animal figured canes, historical canes and many others. Cane collectors will love his shop where he has been buying and selling antique canes since 1975. He also provides a cane appraisal service and helps collectors seek out that hard to find cane.

Although we weren’t looking to buy any cane during our visit, Mr. Segas was very friendly and took time to show us around his shop and his collections. There are canes made of unusual material, such as sawfish or turtle shell, and animal lovers will probably like the canes topped with the figure of their favourite animal. Also interesting were the glass canes and those that have been sculpted of interesting pieces of wood.

Buying Canes in Paris

If you want to know where to buy canes in Paris, head for M. Segas in the Passage Jouffroy and you’ll get a good appreciation of what’s available. The canes make a good gift if you’re looking for an unusual present.

As someone who arrived at the Segas cane shop with just moderate interest in canes, I was quite taken in by the beauty of some of the canes. So when the time approaches that I should need a walking stick, I’ll be thinking of the Segas cane shop.

Address:

M.G.W. Segas
34 Passage Jouffroy
Paris 75009
Tel: 33 1 47 70 89 65

Getting there:
Passage Jouffroy is in the 9th arrondissement, close to the Grévin Museum.  The closest metro stops are Richelieu-Drouot and Grands Boulevards.

Map of Paris

75009 Paris, France

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