Cookie jar is authentic, not a fairy tale
Q. Enclosed is a photo of a Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar that belonged to my mother-in-law. My husband remembers her having it during his childhood in the 1950s and 1960s, but I am not sure of the actual age. Riding Hood's eyes are blue; her apron is decorated with gold star shapes; and the flowers on her dress are red and gold. She stands 13 inches tall and she is in mint condition. Marked on the bottom are the words "Hull Ware - Little Red Riding Hood - Patent Applied for - USA - 967." Is this a genuine Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar, or is it a copy? What is it worth?
A. Hull Pottery made your Little Red Riding Hood cookie jar. They were founded in Crooksville, Ohio, in 1905. They made the Little Red Riding Hood blanks and then they were decorated by Royal China and Novelty Co., which was owned by Regal China in Ohio. After the decorations were completed, the jars were distributed by Hull. Louise Bauer designed the cookie jar in 1943. The flowers on yours are primroses. There have been a plethora of fakes and copies. Yours is authentic.
Your cookie jar was made in the late 1940s and would probably be worth $125 to $175.
Q. Enclosed please find a photo of the mark that is on the back of a porcelain plate. It was a gift from a friend who deals in antiques. I am mainly interested in the date it was made. The plate is 10 inches in diameter, blue and white and has vignettes of civic buildings around the rim. In the center is a view of sailboats in the San Francisco Bay. Also in the center are the words "Views of San Francisco, Cal. - Golden Gate and Entrance to San Francisco Bay." I believe it was made before 1939 because prior to that there was not a Golden Gate Bridge. I have thought perhaps it is a souvenir from the Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915. As I said, I am mainly interested in knowing its age, but it would be nice to know its estimated value.
A. The Rowland and Marsellus Co. was a New York importing company, in business from 1893 to around 1937. They imported blue and white historical plates made in Staffordshire, England, by several potteries. The San Francisco souvenir plate can be found with marks attributing the design to several people and also the Panama-Pacific International Exposition, which you mentioned. Your historical souvenir plate was made around 1900 and can be found selling on the Internet anywhere from $20 to almost $1,500.
• 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.
© 2015, Creators Syndicate