Imagine finding an art pottery vase in a thrift store, buying it for a few dollars and then discovering months later it's actually a rare piece of Newcomb Pottery. That's exactly what happened to a woman on a recent trip to a local thrift store.
After seeing the pretty blue vase on a shelf, she initially passed it up. A week later, the vase still on her mind, she returned to the thrift store and purchased it. She brought it home and put it on a shelf, only to have a visitor tell her a few months later it was Newcomb Pottery. Not only that, but she also discovered it was worth quite a bit. Turns out, it was a scenic Newcomb vase decorated with oak trees and a moon by Sadie Irvine. Its vibrant blue color and artwork is what initially attracted her, but you might be surprised at what happened next.
After realizing what it was, she decided to list it on eBay. Wondering what it brought? Her response was, "I just sold it on eBay for $3,300. It was like winning the lottery!" That five inch vase that stayed on her mind for a week before she returned to buy it brought in over $3,000!
We all know the excitement of stumbling on those pieces that speak to us – whether it's the unique shape, lovely blues, browns or reds or maybe it just catches our eye and we know it's exactly what's missing on our mantelpiece. Often, we discover them in the most unlikely places – thrift stores, estate sales and even yard sales. It's not often those pieces speak to our wallets too!
This wasn't her first discovery of American art pottery in a thrift store – she recently purchased a pair
of six inch Roseville Laurel pots for $10 each. This just serves as a reminder that rare art pottery can still be found when and where we least expect. In these cases, a shelf in a dusty thrift store was where a rare Newcomb vase and two nice Roseville pots were discovered.
For more information on the history of Newcomb College, visit our Newcomb Pottery history page and if you have a similar story of those rare art pottery finds, please drop us an email. We would love to share your story with artpotteryblog.com readers.
