Geo. C. Birlant & Co. (Antiques) was originally founded by George Birlant in 1922. As a realtor, he was exposed to the finer contents of many Lowcountry homes. His gift of gab and extraordinary personality made him a natural to become one of the southeast’s most gifted estate auctioneers. Early in his career (Circa 1915), he was asked to auction an estate out west of a silent film star.
After making the journey to California, the items which weren’t sold were consigned to him and shipped back to Charleston. That became the nucleus for his first antique shop – a warehouse on East Bay Street. Eventually, he moved into a small shop in upper King Street. In the late ’20s, he moved into a storefront at the opposite corner of King and Clifford, then purchased the illustrious four-story “Enston Building” at 187-191 King Street and in 1932 moved into those premises from which we operate today.
Mr. Birlant became one of the foremost authorities on English Georgian furniture and silver and while he maintained an established retail business, he continued to hold regular estate auctions both in-house and on location throughout the southeast. He worked until the day he died in 1971 and the tradition of holding estate auctions was passed down to his son-in-law, Phil Slotin.
Mr. Birlant’s only child, Marian (now deceased) along with her husband Phil Slotin continued the business and was joined by their son, Andrew Birlant Slotin in 1985 and they work tirelessly to maintain the standard of quality and value set forth by the firm’s patriarch.
Geo. C. Birlant & Co. (Antiques) along with its subsidiary, Charleston Battery Bench, Inc. continue into the 21st century at 191 King Street as the family-owned business it’s always been, offering the finest in antique furniture, silver, porcelain, crystal, brass, fireplace accessories, longcase clocks, and exceptional reproductions with unparalleled service, quality and integrity.
As our saying goes…at Birlant’s, you always get “Enormous Selection and Extraordinary Value”!