I'm a little Tea Cup!!!!

[Rillie Alys]

So here recently my grandmother passed away and we have been cleaning out the house gathering her things and along with way to many marbles is a beautiful Mitch match collection of little china tea cups and saucers to match. Now I know that not all of them are antique or really any kind of special but I would definitely like to know the difference if anyone can help me determine what I've got on my hands here it would be awesome...

Also new member here this is my first go at this so sorry if I did this whole thing wrong.

 

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[Emil W]

Welcome to Tnet. Sorry to hear about your grandmother.

I've collected early porcelain since the '80 and over the years have seen thousands of cups & saucers similar to the ones in your photos. I have an extensive collection and have been authenticating early pieces for auction houses, collectors, and dealers for over 30 years.

Although I can't tell you anything specific about the ones you've posted (I specialize in 18th century European, English, and Chinese--resulting in my knowledge of later manufacturers like those in your photos being very limited) I can tell you they unfortunately have limited value. Similar pieces can be bought for $2-$10 per set at auction, and perhaps up to about $35 per set in a local antique shop.

Perhaps someone with more knowledge of these mainly 20th century pieces will find your thread and provide more info for you.

As you dig though your grandmother's belongings, post photos of anything you have questions about--however you should post them in the "what is it" forum on this site.

Good luck!

 

[Rillie Alys]

thank you thank you so much that was all very helpful even though you had little information on any of my pieces I do appreciate the knowledge. It would probably be safe to assume that anything 20th century era would be a bust, referring to whether or not it would be worth but so much like you stated. Again thank you.

 

[Emil W]

You're welcome.

But don't assume everything 20th century has no value. There are certainly some newer porcelain pieces that have considerable value--just not the ones you've shown since those are all common and from very minor manufacturers, even though I admit I can't actually name the makers (the reason I can't name them is because there isn't enough room in my miniscule little brain to hold onto that amount of information).

So just keep posting photos if you find anything else you're questioning, not just porcelain.

 

[Red-Coat]

Welcome to Tnet and my sympathies for the passing of your grandmother.

That’s a nice collection and I’m sure she had fun putting it together but, as said, these pieces have no great value. Enjoy them in the same way that I'm sure your grandmother did. Technically, there’s nothing there which is antique (taking the convention that an antique is more than 100 years old). They’re mid-20th Century as copies of, or borrowing from, earlier styles.

The blue-on-white demi-tasse and saucer is from the time when Avon expanded its line of novelty containers for perfumes and colognes to include collectibles such as decorative china, beer-steins, bells, figurines, Christmas ornaments and such during the 1970s and 1980s. I’ve seen that same design with Avon’s mark and a fuller description on the bottom that says “Medici Porcelain, Florence c.1560” (which is what it’s styled on) and a copyright date of 1984.

The pieces with the foil labels saying “Royal Sealy, Japan” are likely from the 1950s or possibly as late as the 1970s. Royal Sealy was the trade name used by an importer of Japanese porcelain in operation from the early 1940s (and then again after the War) producing in imitation of earlier European styles. Obviously there were no imports following Pearl Harbour and, when production resumed after the war, the required wording for origin marking was “Occupied Japan” until 1952 and then “Japan” thereafter. In that post-war period, foil labels carrying the origin and other marks became a preferred alternative to printed marks on the pieces. The labels could be removed, along with any stigma associated with lingering ill-feeling about buying Japanese goods.

The ”Kent” bone china is from Taylor & Kent of Longton, Stoke-on-Trent in England. Although they were founded in 1876 (many sources perpetuate an incorrect date of 1867 arising from a misprint somewhere), your particular mark was in use between c.1951-1961 after which they used the trade name “Elizabethan China”.

The “Crowned M” I can’t attribute, but the comments above about “Japan” marks and likely post-1952 dating also apply here. It might be for what became the “Noritake” company, originally established by the Morimura Brothers in New York in 1876 as an importer of Japanese porcelain from their own factories. They used several hundred different marks, many of which have a stylised letter ‘M’ for ‘Morimura’, with and without a crown above. Noritake stopped importing to the US in 1940 and resumed several years after the war ended.

It's not clear if the ‘Crowned M’ mark you’re showing in picture #11 relates to the rose-decorated cup & saucer in picture #13, but I’m guessing it does. I’ve seen exactly that pattern, known as “Moss Rose” and branded “Bond Ware” on porcelain sold by Lipper & Mann, although the pieces are marked as such on the bottom. L&M were founded in 1946 in New York as an importer of fine glass and ceramics from Czechoslovakia and other European countries but three years later expanded to include porcelain imports from Japan. Some American companies preferred to have their own exclusive mark on imported pieces rather than the actual manufacturer’s mark (although the ‘Japan’ indication couldn’t be avoided) and my guess would be that yours and the L&M pieces came from the same factory… perhaps Noritake.

The “Hour of Power” mark in picture #13, I assume relates to the cup & saucer, sugar bowl and milk jug in pictures #10 and #12. Doubtless you’ve Googled that mark, found the rose pattern, and know that it relates to fund-raiser ‘souvenirs’ marketed by the Christian evangelist Robert Harold Schuller, founder of the ‘Crystal Cathedral’ in Garden Grove, California. He hosted a weekly “Hour of Power” TV program from 1970 until his retirement in 2010.

Sadly, none of these pieces would likely sell for anything beyond $10-15 or so, and without any particular value benefit where you have a set. The Avon piece might fetch a little more since Avon is generally a quite collectible name.

Hope that helps.

 

[vpnavy]

...new member here...

I noticed this was your very first post - so, Welcome Aboard Rillie Alys!

 

[WannaDig3687]

My deepest sympathy in the passing of your grandmother. The others have pretty much let you know what you have, which is nice. I have been decorating/displaying the china and porcelain pieces that have been passed down to me. It's all sentimental for me, nothing of monetary value. Don't worry about whether or not you are posting incorrectly. You did fine. We have all been new to the site and trying to figure things out. Others will guide you along the way. Welcome from Ohio.

 

[tamrock]

I'm sorry for your loss and welcome aboard. I never knew either of my grandmother's as my fathers mother passed in 1940 and only in my distant memory have an image in the back of my mind of my mother's mom who passed in 1958 of an older lady that always wanted to hug and hold me. Though your grandmother's collection may not have a whole lot of monetary value, they will always in a way represent the memories of her. I see a lot of fine china in thrift stores these days with very affordable prices. In a way it makes me sad to think that some descendant would donate something that was at one time a very cherished thing by one of their ancestors, but I do get it, as me and my sister worked 3 days clearing out all the things my mother had kept. Fortunately my mother lived on 96 years and passed away on Nov. 2021, so her granddaughters all knew her very well and they all wanted some of the things my mom held on to, except I'll keep the gold, they ain't getting that from me quite yet. The only china pieces I pick up are made in England, by Shelly. I've paid very little each of these and only buy them because for some reason they seem to have a good base of collectors out there that like Shelly bone china and will pay more than I pick them up at thrift store prices.