TEAPOT AND STAND / TRIVET - THE MYSTERY? - Antique China and Fine China Collectibles Query

by VALERIE EYNON
(WOLVERHAMPTON)

TEAPOT AND STAND / TRIVET THE MYSTERY? - Antique China and Fine China Collectibles Query:- HELLO AGAIN, I DO LOVE THE MYSTERY OF NOT KNOWING THE MAKE AND DESIGN OF A PARTICULAR PIECE OF POTTERY OR CHINA, BUT THESE PIECES HAVE REALLY GOT ME PUZZLED I HAVE NOT BEEN ABLE TO FIND MAKER OR DESIGN IN ANY BOOKS. COULD THEY HAVE BEEN MANUFACTURED ABROAD I WOULD APPRECIATE YOUR THOUGHTS ON THE SUBJECT.
THANKS VAL EYNON.

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Reply by Peter (admin)

THE MYSTERY DEEPENS! What a lovely and unusual pot and trivet set! Thank you for sharing with us. A strange 'smoked' lustre finish (unless that's your photograph).

An expert might shoot me down in flames because my knowledge is very limited in this area, but the fact that it is unmarked suggests old. Teapot and matching trivet sets are rare anyway, even from the prolific English makers. Something about your teapot says European to me - at least, it just does not have the feel of a 'normal' English maker. If it was European, this would make it porcelain and not bone china. It is a very unusual pattern, and even less common is to see teaware as a matched pot and trivet set.

I am presuming the decoration is printed not hand painted. If it were hand painted the item would be very valuable. Having said that, the first decals were produced in 1750 - the only alternative to hand-painting. The decal came into widespread ceramic use for mass production in the early 20th century - which might help in the dating and the valuing.

If you do a deep search on eBay, you will see that a named teapot & trivet set from an average maker is marked at around £20 starting price. An original Winton Chintz would be £400 -£500

Go to my China Replacement page here: follow the instructions on how to do a deep level eBay search and put in these keywords:

"Nymphenburg 19th C. Handpainted Tea Pot & Trivet"

and then

"JAPAN LUSTREWARE TEAPOT WITH TRIVET"

You will see the price differences between a truly valuable set and a not so.

You can then play around with your own searches on pot and trivet sets. Look at the UK sellers as well as the international ones.

I found a teapot and trivet stand which is described as an "English Porcelain Set, Teapot and Trivet, Hand Painted Flowers" (note the 'hand-painted' flowers). They describe it as "unmarked but very old because according to the original owner they were purchased new in England in the early 1900's. The main body color is soft yellow, shading to a warm dusky orange sunburst on the edges, ornamented with small purple flowers".

There is something similar in the 'duskiness' of the decoration. This may be just co-incidence, as they describe it as "English porcelain". However, to be both English and porcelain would be unlikely. European and porcelain would be fine, and English and bone china would be fine, but not English and porcelain. Most English non bone china wares are either stoneware (ironstone) or earthenware, but virtually never porcelain (that was a European tradition of china making).

Val, I would love to know the history of this nice matching teapot and trivet stand set - it is quite charming and, as far as I can see by looking around, quite a rare item. The matching set above is marked for sale at $225 USD (bearing in mind it is hand painted). But as I keep saying, I am no more of an expert than you!! Just an enthusiast!

Please keep us posted! Looking forward to hearing the next installment.

Peter (admin)

Some General Research Tips for China Antiquing

I am not a china expert by any means, just an artisan within the industry, however, I always pass on any information I have for free and publish it for the benefit of all. You can use my in-house search engine located on the home page (and on many other main pages) to check for answers to any other queries you may have.

My own knowledge more centered on famous English china makers, but all queries are welcome. You can do a certain amount of your own research online by knowing the most efficient way to search. On my China Replacement page, I show you how.

I give general tips on pottery marks here .

Here my pick of websites for online pottery marks research:

Note: Pottery marks online research is a time consuming and often thankless task. Free pottery mark online information is often limited to the websites of antique dealers who tend to have only selective information. The most thorough antiquarian online databases are private and levy a charge. Some are better than others, but a good one can often be both cost effective and time saving.

Here is a selection of the better free websites which I use often:-

Gotheborg.com - Chinese & Japanese and Far East porcelain marks - export marks are normally in English, often with English sounding patterns and brand names.

Porcelainmarksandmore.com - German and East European porcelain marks - excellent site but uses navigation based on geographical location not maker’s name, so lacks simple alphabetical navigation (can be frustrating).

Collectorscircle.com - Bohemian & Czech china marks - great for eyeballing lots of pottery marks quickly – I always scroll down on ‘auto-mouse’ to look for a mark (you can sip a cup of teas as you do so).

Oldandsold.com – French pottery marks - 22 pages of French marks. Navigation can be somewhat muddled.

Oldandsold.com - American pottery marks - 41 pages of antique pottery marks to search in alphabetical listing. Good luck!

If you ever require more detailed advice, or you are short of time, using a professional online antiquarian service can be useful. For the cost of a couple of cups of coffee you can get often get an amazing solution to a thorny question. Some are better than others. If you have a one-off question, I recommend Whats-it-worth. Their service is well used and appreciated by visitors with zero negative feedback.

They are online antiquarians, specializing in identifying pottery marks. They charge per question or per appraisal, depending on the type of query you have. They are quick, efficient, friendly and not expensive. I can send you some sample appraisals to give you an idea of what they do – just contact me here.

WhatsItWorth are best for one off queries (they also run online courses run by their resident experts).

However, if you think you may have a series of ongoing queries (you may be getting seriously into antiquing), you need John's membership site at Marks4Antiques contact me here for the special discounts for visitors to this site.

You may have noticed some of the replies on this website are written by John. He and his team have an amazing knowledge, but in order to have them on-board full-time, you have to join their membership site, which is only worth it if you have regular items you need help on identifying and valuing.

We were lucky enough to have Marks4Antiques answer some of our visitors more obscure queries for free – in order to give a kind of taster of their knowledge base. For more details on John’s database and membership site, contact me.

Finally, if you are getting bitten by the china antiquing bug, you need to know about a fun and interesting ebook with all the tips and tricks of the pros called 'How To Buy & Sell Antiques For Fun & Profit'. Buy it and find out why ebooks work – much more efficient than carrying around lots of heavy books on antiquing!! Have it on your laptop, like a mobile library, and it will save you time, money and effort - and show you how to earn a few dollars more whilst having fun.

'How To Buy & Sell Antiques For Fun & Profit'.

Check it out here:

www.figurines-sculpture.com/buy-and-sell-antiques-for-fun


Best regards

Peter (admin)