Toby Jugs from a Gloucester Charity Shop

Question

th

Toby Jugs from a Gloucester Charity Shop

by

trevor hamlett

8 years ago

11

I was in a Gloucester charity shop with my girlfriend today and noticed the staff placing a selection of Toby Jugs on the counter, there was a Montgomery head jug which i thought was nice and so i quickly went outside and googled it and realised it was worth around 80 pounds, so i went back in to notice someone else had got their eye on it and was trying to get it for 5 pounds. When i expressed an interest she got really upset, with me and the staff. The staff member was a sweet old lady who was trying to raise money for the cats protection society and was saying that she will sell it for 15 pounds. So the lady haggled with her and bought it for £10. I said i was interested and the staff said come into the back and have a look, we are just unpacking them , there were around 40 pieces, various ages, all types of Toby Jugs. The woman who bought the first one barged in and said are there any Welsh Lady jugs there, to my surprise there was and i thought Hang on! i think she is a collector, so i said to the the staff alright I will but the lot, the other woman was furious and was shouting i saw them first etc. Anyway the staff liked me more and said "sorry this gentleman has bought them" with this the woman stormed out the shop and i asked how much for all of them, she said make me an offer....... £80.00 . sold... and off i went. So we spent the afternoon looking on ebay, and various websites to cross reference them , thanks to my tips from Erin Wallace in her latest course, i soon found and matched around 27 of them with an estimated low price of around 600-700 pounds although there are a couple in there that i think are worth something extra. So if anyone can give me some advice that would be great. I have taken photos of each one in a Lightbox and also attach a group photo.

Jo Knight · Answer 1 · 21st August 2016, 11:49:27

I'm no expert, but from speaking to a collector friend online (I showed them your photo - most of these aren't toby jugs but character jugs). The earliest is from about 1950, and character jugs are not worth anything unless they have a Daulton stamp. He also very helpfully recommended British Toby Jugs by Vic Schuler, which is some say the is the definitive book on the subject

Elspeth Briscoe · Answer 2 · 21st August 2016, 11:56:43

Keep watching Trevor.. you never know when you might get one of our experts popping over from the classroom to comment..

Elspeth Briscoe · Answer 3 · 21st August 2016, 12:53:39

Please do let us know any other thoughts anyone has - we'd love to hear from some collectors or toby jug enthusiasts :)

trevor hamlett · Answer 4 · 22nd August 2016, 11:57:48

thank you , thats great! alot of them do have the DAULTON stamp on and the letter A ( which i think also means something ) I priced them up on ebay and estimate is around 600-700 based on what other people are selling the same items for , although a few are not identified . I think i might put them all into an auction as a Lot

Bob Moores · Answer 5 · 22nd August 2016, 11:57:59

Congratulations to Trevor for acquiring this lovely collection of “Toby jugs” although Jo is correct in saying that the majority are actually character jugs – head and shoulders only whereas a Toby jug is full length. Whilst very attractive these are predominantly mid to late 20th century and, as they would have been made in large numbers, are not very valuable. The earlier Toby jugs that I sell were made between c. 1780 and 1830 and values vary from between c. £200 and £8000 – sadly Trevor will not be able to retire on the proceeds! Having said that (even if not Royal Doulton) these do have a value and are widely collected, I would estimate an average value of around £10 - 15 per jug and therefore based upon the number a very sound investment! These could be sold on Ebay or alternatively at a local auction. I would imagine that the auctioneer would “bundle” these into lots of around 10 and they ought to do well – of course there may be a particularly rare example amongst these and provided the sale is online (and will be seen by collectors worldwide) this will be picked up and sell accordingly. Bob Moores Nestegg Antiques

Elspeth Briscoe · Answer 6 · 22nd August 2016, 11:59:45

What a valuable answer - thanks so much Bob. Can you tell us a bit about your background and Nestegg Antiques and how you got into collecting?

Erin Marie Wallace · Answer 7 · 22nd August 2016, 17:05:10

Well done Trevor! Most do appear to be Royal Doulton (I am an expert on Royal Doulton so these are like old friends), the 'A' stamp denotes the pieces were fired circa 1939-1949 (I'm going on memory with these dates, allow me a few years leeway to each side. Look closely at the Doulton tobies (full body) pieces because some of the color variations of the waistcoats, pipes, etc. can change the values dramatically ('colourways' and 'variations' they are called). Touch base with me if you have any specific questions regarding research, I have an extensive library on the subject. Cheers!

Elspeth Briscoe · Answer 8 · 22nd August 2016, 17:24:58

Erin - superb - thanks so much! Erin is one of our own experts here at MyAntiqueSchool. They do come over and comment on occasion! Trevor got lucky :)

Erin Marie Wallace · Answer 9 · 22nd August 2016, 22:07:23

P.S. Trevor... thank you for the kudos from my course on researching!

Elspeth Briscoe · Answer 10 · 24th August 2016, 21:34:48

Incredibly we have only had some input from Steve Mullins, from The American Toby Jug Museum!! Here's what Stephen has to say: The response from Bob Meers is perhaps most accurate. Royal Doulton jugs are currently selling from about 15-40% of the prices listed in the price guides (one of which I wrote), depending on their relative value in the guide. The higher the value in the guides, the greater percentage Mr. Hamlett is likely to achieve. Non- Royal Doulton jugs do have some value, tho, admittedly, those values have declined substantially from their highs in the late 1990s when we wrote our first book. I note someone mentioned Vic Schuler's book for reference. That book is excellent in identifying 18th and early 19thC jugs, but rather useless with regard to 20th Century. Two books that would be more useful would be Toby and Character Jugs of the 20th Century and A Century of Royal Doulton Character and Toby Jugs (both of which I am the co-author). Both books come with companion price guides and are available directly through the Museum. (Not incidentally, just off the press is our new book, A World of Majolica Character Pitchers, is being introduced at the Majolica International Society's convention in Baltimore MD this weekend.) If Mr. Hamlett would like to converse more, I am welcome to do so Thanks again. Steve Mullins, Museum Curator. STEPHEN M. MULLINS FOUNDER, CURATOR & AUTHOR Stephen Mullins, a graduate of Dartmouth College and the business school at the University of Michigan, is chairman of a real estate investment firm in Evanston, IL. Mullins began collecting more than 60 years ago when a camp counselor in Canada enticed him with a Royal Doulton brochure to spend the balance of his camp candy allowance, all of nine dollars, to buy six small character jugs. Today the collection numbers over 7,000 and is the largest collection of Toby and Character Jugs in the world. Mullins regularly speaks before meetings and conventions and other interested groups regarding the history of character and Toby Jugs. With David Fastenau, he is the co-author of two books: "Toby & Character Jugs of the 20th Century" and "A Century of Royal Doulton Character & Toby Jugs" released in 2008. Additionally, Mullins contributed to numerous other books on the subject and is considered an authority on the subject by collectors throughout the world. He is also a national champion and world-medalist master swimmer. Having raised three children, he currently resides in Evanston, Illinois with his wife Carol.

Erin Marie Wallace · Answer 11 · 25th August 2016, 13:03:20

Mr. Mullins is an old friend and easily one of the most knowledgeable experts on the subject of Toby & Character jugs available. Trevor, you have pulled at universal heartstrings with this collection!

Toby Jugs from a Gloucester Charity Shop

Toby Jugs from a Gloucester Charity Shop

trevor hamlett

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