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Auction Tips
Collecting Roseville Pottery
Though the Roseville Pottery company was founded in 1890 in the city of Roseville, Ohio (hence the name), it was not until 1900, after moving to Zanesville, that it started producing art pottery.
These early pieces were in the taste of the period � art nouveau pieces with lovely delicate glazes and usually signed by the artists who decorated them. Among the subjects painted on those items (which were mainly vases in those days) were sceneries, flowers, dogs and Egyptian and Greek scenes. They often could be mistaken for early Moorcroft pieces by their tube-line decorations and bold motifs, or, for their Mongol lines which boasted fiery flamb� glazes, the early Noke pieces produced at Royal Doulton. Among their main artists were Claude Leffler, C. Neff, William Hall and Katy Duvall. But the true crowning glory of the Roseville line is the Rozanne line which was produced under Frederick Rhead � these pieces, which are very scarce today, command high prices whether at auction or in antique shops.
However, when we think about Roseville Pottery today, we usually envision those matt-glazed pieces with tri-dimensional flowers which were made after 1916 in a wide range of shapes. The Freesia, Water Lily, Pinecone and Cherry Blossom motifs are among the easiest to recognize, as are the background colours of bright off-whites, deep blues, striking oranges and warm greens. And, of course, the Juvenile pattern, with its frieze of standing rabbits, has been a favourite since its inception.
The list of items produced by Roseville would be much too long to enumerate but they produced all manners of vases, bowls, candelabras, pitchers, tea services as well as jardini�res, both hanging and on pedestals, umbrella stands and their very popular wall pockets which were extremely popular in the 20s and 30s.
However, the arrival of numerous competitors in the area made it harder for Roseville to continue producing its full line of products and it closed its doors in 1954.
Most if not all Roseville pieces of that nature are marked on the underside with the company name in relief, a model number and a size number. The very useful book published by Collector Books, written by Sharon and Bob Huxford, is very handy because it lists all sizes with photographs of each pattern. There are also some fun reprints of old advertisements that make our eyes water when we look at the prices!
There is also an interesting website (www.roseville-pottery.net) which is a repository of information regarding Roseville pottery including a full list of patterns with great photos, information on the company, a list of books on Roseville and also a full section on reproductions.
Speaking of reproductions, it is known that there are currently repros of every Roseville pattern ever made. As usual the molding is not as crisp as on the originals and the glazes are dull and applied sloppily. Getting to know the various sizes in which a pattern was offered is also a good way of being able to spot reproductions as is the fact of checking the raised signature. One sure way of getting to learn about fakes is to get to learn as much as you can about the items you wish to collect and handle as many pieces as you can so that you may be able to recognize the feel and the weight of the pieces.
With hundreds of items in its production line, Roseville pottery is a rewarding and interesting area for people to collect and, since it was made in fairly large numbers, those pieces can usually be found easily enough to make the chase interesting and in no time, you can gather a worthwhile collection that will give you many years of enjoyment.
Author: Johanne Durocher Norchet
Are you interested in collecting Roseville Pottery? Send us an e-mail and let us know. We'll try and keep and eye out for you. In the meantime, you can search for Roseville Pottery in all of our current auction items.
This article has been provided by Theresa Taylor Auctioneering to help our customers. Would you like to see an article on another subject? Drop us a line.
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