Grandmother's Roseville vase a timely find
Q. I always read your column in our paper and saw the question on the Roseville vase. Interestingly, two weeks later I was looking in my cupboard for a vase and discovered that I had a Roseville vase; it was my grandmother's and I had forgotten about it. It is green, stands about 8 inches tall and is in very good condition. Marked on the bottom is the name "Roseville - USA - 683 - 8." I had no idea that it had any value other than sentimental.
Thank you for any information on my grandmother's vase.
A. Roseville Pottery Co. made your pottery vase. They were founded in Roseville, Ohio, in 1890 and moved to Zanesville, Ohio, in 1894. Your vase is an example of their "Gardenia" pattern that was introduced in 1950. It was produced in a large variety of pieces, including vases, jardiniares, bookends, candlesticks, cornucopia vases, bowls, wall pockets, baskets and ewers. Gardenia was available in tan with orange tinge, gray and green finishes. The flowers and leaves were in relief.
Your vase would probably fetch in the range of anywhere from $125 to $175 in an antiques shop.
Q. This mark is on the bottom of a silver coffee set that I have. The set includes a coffee pot, a teapot, a cream pitcher, a sugar bowl and matching tray. My grandmother bought it from an antique shop in the 1930s and it is in excellent condition.
I wish to give it to my daughter and would like to learn more about its history.
A. You have a Victorian-era silver plate tea set that was made by Derby Silver Co. They were located in Derby, Connecticut, and founded in 1873. Derby became part of the International Silver Co. in 1898. Derby Silver Co. made both hollowware and flatware, including children's cups, handheld mirrors, candlesticks, clocks and baskets. The building on the Housatonic River still stands. Derby Silver Company did not survive the Great Depression and closed in 1933. The number "1600" is a design number. "Quadruple Plate" was frequently used in the late 1800s, and was a term that was used to show a hollowware piece was the highest quality of silver plate. It was silver plated with four times more silver than standard plate wares.
Your coffee set was made around 1892 and would probably be worth $195 to $250.
• Address your questions to Anne McCollam, P.O. Box 247, Notre Dame, IN 46556. Items of a general interest will be answered in this column. Due to the volume of inquiries, she cannot answer individual letters.
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