Grueby Pottery

Grueby is a small, strong market. The median across 1,381 lots sold since 2018 is $1,000, and about a fifth of them sold for over $3,000. Plain architectural tiles sit at the bottom of that range and hand-thrown vases at the top. Revere Auctions has sold a LeBoutillier “Pines” tile at $2,000 and repeat groups of green field tiles between $450 and $1,000. We offer free auction estimates: send photographs including the back of any tile.

What Grueby Is Worth

Grueby Faience was founded in Boston in 1894 by William Henry Grueby. Its matte green glaze, thick and cucumber-skinned, was so influential that most American art potteries copied it. The company made both hand-thrown vases and architectural tile, and those are two different markets.

Based on 1,381 sold lots. All prices are hammer prices (before buyer’s premium), from U.S. auction results January 2018 through June 2026.

306 of 1,381 lots, about a fifth, sold above $3,000, and the best result since 2018 was $110,000 for an important covered jar. Almost all of that value sits in hand-thrown vessels. If what you have is a stack of plain green field tiles, expect tens of dollars each rather than thousands, and that is normal.

Tiles Versus Vases

This is the distinction that decides the value. Grueby produced architectural tile in quantity, and plain green field tiles are common enough that they sell in groups of sixteen or twenty for a few hundred dollars. A decorated pictorial tile is a different object entirely.

The hand-thrown vases, with applied and tooled leaf forms under matte green, are the pieces that carry the market. They were finished by hand by named decorators, and a good one is a five-figure object.

Grueby “Pines” Tile, Angled to Show the Raised-Line Decoration. Sold $2,000 by Revere Auctions

Why the Mark Matters More Than the Glaze

William Henry Grueby founded Grueby Faience in Boston in 1894 and spent years developing a matte green glaze with the texture of a cucumber skin. It was a genuine breakthrough. It also turned out to be the company’s undoing.

The glaze was so admired that most American art potteries produced their own version of it within a decade, and they could make it far more cheaply because Grueby’s vases were finished by hand. Grueby won gold medals at the 1900 Paris Exposition and was in financial trouble within a few years of it. The pottery side of the business failed in 1909.

This is not just a story. It is the practical reason a matte green pot needs a mark before anyone will call it Grueby, and the reason the hand-finished vases are worth many times the machine-made imitations that put the company out of business.

Marks and Attribution

Grueby used an impressed circular mark, often a lotus blossom with the firm name around it, and the wording changed as the company reorganised. Vases frequently carry a decorator’s initials incised into the base as well.

Because the matte green glaze was so widely imitated, an unmarked green pot is not a Grueby. Photograph the base, and for tiles photograph the back, where the mark usually is.

Grueby at Revere Auctions

Revere has sold 13 Grueby lots, most of them architectural tile, which is an honest picture of what actually turns up in estates. We catalogue tile by pattern and designer rather than by the square foot, because that is what separates a $40 field tile from a $2,000 one.

Revere Auctions results. All prices are hammer prices (before buyer’s premium), from U.S. auction results January 2018 through June 2026.

Groups of plain green field tiles have sold here repeatedly between $450 and $1,000 per group. If you have a quantity of them from a fireplace surround or a porch, they are worth cataloging together rather than individually.

Grueby Pottery Appraisals

An auction estimate and a formal appraisal answer different questions.

A free auction estimate tells you what a piece would likely sell for at auction. It costs nothing and it is usually enough to decide whether to sell. Send photographs including the base and we will respond with a range.

A formal written appraisal is a signed document stating a value for a stated purpose: insurance, estate settlement and probate, or charitable donation. It is a paid service written to a different standard of value, and insurance appraisals in particular are normally higher than the auction estimate for the same piece.

Revere Auctions provides both through our appraisal and valuation services team. If you are not sure which you need, ask for the free auction estimate first.

How to Sell Grueby Pottery

The strongest results for Grueby pottery come at auction, where national and international collectors bid against each other. Revere Auctions offers free, no-obligation auction estimates: send photos and dimensions and our specialists respond with a current market valuation and a recommendation on how to sell. Consigned works are professionally photographed, cataloged, and marketed through our fine art auctions to a worldwide bidder base, and we regularly arrange shipping for consignors across the country. If you need a formal written valuation for insurance or estate purposes, our appraisal and valuation services team can help; you can also read more about how selling at auction works.

Related guides: art pottery values, Rookwood pottery, Newcomb College pottery, our decorative art department.

Reviewed by the fine art specialists at Revere Auctions, St. Paul, Minnesota.

Grueby Pottery: Frequently Asked Questions

How much is Grueby pottery worth?

The median across 1,381 Grueby lots sold at auction since 2018 is $1,000, and 306 of those sold for over $3,000. The record in that period is $110,000. Plain architectural tiles sit at the bottom of the range and decorated hand-thrown vases at the top.

Are Grueby tiles valuable?

It depends entirely on the tile. Plain green field and vent tiles are common and sell in groups, often $25 to $60 each. A decorated pictorial tile can bring several thousand dollars, and an important designed tile has reached $65,000 for a pair.

How do I identify Grueby pottery?

Look for an impressed circular mark, often a lotus blossom with the firm name around it. Vases frequently carry a decorator’s incised initials as well. For tiles the mark is usually on the back. The matte green glaze alone does not identify Grueby, because it was widely copied.

Why is Grueby green glaze so well known?

Grueby’s thick matte green glaze was influential enough that most American art potteries produced their own version of it. That is why an unmarked matte green pot is more likely to be an imitator than a Grueby.

Where can I sell Grueby pottery or tiles?

Auction reaches the collectors and architectural salvage buyers who follow Grueby. Revere Auctions provides free auction estimates: send photographs of the piece, including the back of any tile, and our specialists will respond with a valuation.

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