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Teco Vase, ca. 1910

Value (2016) | $7,500 Auction – $10,000 Auction
Watch  

GUEST:
Friend of mine that I lived with was a florist and he got it from a lady that he housesat for. And we always had it in our house. It always had fresh flowers in it. It was always great for great big ginger, bird of paradise, big tropical plants that we have down in Florida is what we used it for.

APPRAISER:
But you know this is a piece of Teco pottery from the Chicago area. The thing about this vase-- Teco made two different types of pottery. They made a very organic ware, and they made a rather rectilinear or architectural ware. And obviously we have a fairly architectural piece here. You can see the strapped buttresses coming up and down the side of the piece. That's what they were known for. You have to bear in mind that Chicago at the time was in the process of being rebuilt after the great Chicago fire. And so these new structures were going up and it influenced the decorative art that was featured inside of these buildings at the time. So, Teco became very famous for many reasons, not the least of which is the quality of their commercial art ware. This is a molded pot. Teco was in business for a while, but this pot probably dates to about 1910. Oh, by the way, here's the mark on the bottom of the piece. It's die stamped into the pot. Very typical for Teco. But, you know, they produced the same mold for a period of time, so the pot could have been made 1906, 1916, somewhere around there.

GUEST:
Wow.

APPRAISER:
But, 1910 is a safe bet. This is bigger than most Teco. It's got the same glaze that most Teco comes with, this matte green.

GUEST:
Yeah. I've always loved the color. It's just great in the house and with house plants.

APPRAISER:
There is some damage, obviously. There is four or five small nicks on the pot. If you look inside the piece, you can see deposits from where it was used for plants and flowers over the years. The deposits on the inside can be taken out with naval jelly.

GUEST:
Okay.

APPRAISER:
Okay?

GUEST:
I can do that.

APPRAISER:
The chips aren't really bad enough. There's scallop shell edge chips that can be repaired.

GUEST:
Do you recommend that?

APPRAISER:
I would leave it alone, myself.

GUEST:
Okay.

APPRAISER:
And I would soak this-- because it's very dirty, I would soak this in something to leach the dirt out of the porous surface of the finish. But, all things considered, the pot's in pretty good condition. It really has very little damage. So, if this pot were in mint condition it would be worth more, but still, in the condition it's in, it's a $15,000 piece of pottery.

GUEST:
Oh, my God!

APPRAISER:
In perfect condition this is about a $20,000 to $30,000 piece of Teco.

GUEST:
Oh, my gosh. I had no idea. None whatsoever.

APPRAISER:
It's a really good, strong, solid piece of Teco.

GUEST:
Had no idea of the worth.

Support provided by: Learn more

Appraisal Details

Appraiser
David Rago
Pottery & Porcelain
Rago-Wright-LAMA Auctions
Lambertville, NJ
Update (2016)
$7,500 Auction – $10,000 Auction
Appraised value (2002)
$15,000 Auction
Featured In
Albuquerque, Hour 1 (#0701)
Vintage Albuquerque (#2119)
Event
Albuquerque, NM (July 20, 2002)
Category
Pottery & Porcelain
Period
20th Century
Form
Vase
Material
Ceramic

Executive producer Marsha Bemko shares her tips for getting the most out of ANTIQUES ROADSHOW.

Value can change: The value of an item is dependent upon many things, including the condition of the object itself, trends in the market for that kind of object, and the location where the item will be sold. These are just some of the reasons why the answer to the question "What's it worth?" is so often "It depends."

Note the date: Take note of the date the appraisal was recorded. This information appears in the upper left corner of the page, with the label "Appraised On." Values change over time according to market forces, so the current value of the item could be higher, lower, or the same as when our expert first appraised it.

Context is key: Listen carefully. Most of our experts will give appraisal values in context. For example, you'll often hear them say what an item is worth "at auction," or "retail," or "for insurance purposes" (replacement value). Retail prices are different from wholesale prices. Often an auctioneer will talk about what she knows best: the auction market. A shop owner will usually talk about what he knows best: the retail price he'd place on the object in his shop. And though there are no hard and fast rules, an object's auction price can often be half its retail value; yet for other objects, an auction price could be higher than retail. As a rule, however, retail and insurance/replacement values are about the same.

Verbal approximations: The values given by the experts on ANTIQUES ROADSHOW are considered "verbal approximations of value." Technically, an "appraisal" is a legal document, generally for insurance purposes, written by a qualified expert and paid for by the owner of the item. An appraisal usually involves an extensive amount of research to establish authenticity, provenance, composition, method of construction, and other important attributes of a particular object.

Opinion of value: As with all appraisals, the verbal approximations of value given at ROADSHOW events are our experts' opinions formed from their knowledge of antiques and collectibles, market trends, and other factors. Although our valuations are based on research and experience, opinions can, and sometimes do, vary among experts.

Appraiser affiliations: Finally, the affiliation of the appraiser may have changed since the appraisal was recorded. To see current contact information for an appraiser in the ROADSHOW Archive, click on the link below the appraiser's picture. Our Appraiser Index also contains a complete list of active ROADSHOW appraisers and their contact details and biographies.

More on This Appraisal

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Large Green Teco Vase, ca. 1910
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Teco Pottery Buttressed Vase, ca. 1905
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Teco Pottery Vase, ca. 1905
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