Rookwood Pottery

Most Rookwood pottery sells at auction for $150 to $600. The median across 16,342 Rookwood lots sold since 2018 is $275. About 3% sell for more than $3,000, and the difference is almost entirely the decorator and the decade. Revere Auctions has sold 35 Rookwood lots, including a rare Shirayamadani gingko vase at $2,700 and a McLaughlin “Pine Woods” tile at $2,800. We offer free auction estimates: send photos of the piece and the base, and we will tell you what it is worth.

What Rookwood Is Worth

Rookwood was founded in Cincinnati in 1880 by Maria Longworth Nichols and ran, in various forms, into the 1960s. It produced an enormous quantity of pottery over that span, which is why the median is low and the ceiling is high.

Based on 16,342 sold lots. All prices are hammer prices (before buyer’s premium), from U.S. auction results January 2018 through June 2026.

The ceiling is high but genuinely rare. The best Rookwood result since 2018 was $51,000 for an early vase by Carl Schmidt, and only 476 of 16,342 lots, about 3%, sold above $3,000. Most Rookwood is not that, and there is nothing wrong with a $200 vase. It is worth knowing which one you have before you decide what to do with it.

The Decorator Is the Value

A plain 1940s Rookwood vase and an early vase by a leading decorator can differ by a hundred times. The names that carry the market include Kataro Shirayamadani, Carl Schmidt, William P. McDonald, Albert and Anna Marie Valentien, Matthew Daly, and Maria Longworth Nichols herself.

Decorators signed with initials or a monogram, usually incised or painted near the base. That mark is the single most valuable thing to photograph.

C.J. McLaughlin for Rookwood, “Pine Woods” Tile, Sold $2,800 by Revere Auctions

Where Rookwood Came From

Rookwood was founded in Cincinnati in 1880 by Maria Longworth Nichols, who had seen Japanese ceramics at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia and wanted to make something of that quality in America. She was a wealthy woman running a serious pottery in her own name in the 1880s, which was close to unheard of.

That origin explains two things you can see in the pots. The Japanese influence runs through the early work, in the asymmetry, the naturalistic decoration and the dark glazes. And her own pieces are collected on their own account: a monumental vase by her sold at auction for $27,000.

Rookwood won the grand prize at the 1900 Paris Exposition, which is roughly when the work now at the top of the market was being made. The company struggled through the Depression, changed hands several times, and the later production reflects it.

How to Date a Rookwood Piece

Rookwood used a flame mark: a reversed R over a P, with flames added around it. From 1887 one flame was added each year, so a mark with fourteen flames indicates 1900. From 1901 the flames stopped at fourteen and Roman numerals were added beneath for the year, so XXVI is 1926.

Shape numbers appear below the mark, and a glaze letter often follows. Photograph the whole base rather than only the flame, because the shape number and decorator initials are frequently the part that determines the value.

Rookwood at Revere Auctions

Revere has sold 35 Rookwood lots, and we catalogue them the way the market buys them: by decorator, shape number and date, rather than as generic art pottery. That is what puts a piece in front of the collectors who pay the premium.

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

We handle the whole range, and most of what we sell is the ordinary end of it. Undecorated later Rookwood sells here in groups at $150 to $350. Signed decorator pieces sell for many times that. A free estimate tells you which you have, with no obligation either way.

Rookwood 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 Rookwood Pottery

The strongest results for Rookwood 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, Newcomb College pottery, Grueby pottery, our decorative art department.

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

Rookwood Pottery: Frequently Asked Questions

How much is Rookwood pottery worth?

Most Rookwood sells for $150 to $600 at auction. The median across 16,342 lots sold since 2018 is $275. Named-decorator pieces reach $3,000 to $30,000 and the record in that period is $51,000. The decorator and the decade account for most of the difference.

How do I date Rookwood pottery?

Rookwood used a flame mark, a reversed R over a P. From 1887 one flame was added per year, so fourteen flames indicates 1900. From 1901 the flames stopped at fourteen and Roman numerals below the mark give the year, so XXVI is 1926.

What are the decorator initials on Rookwood?

Rookwood decorators signed with initials or a monogram incised or painted near the base. Names such as Kataro Shirayamadani, Carl Schmidt, William P. McDonald and the Valentiens carry large premiums. Photograph the whole base so the initials, shape number and glaze letter are all readable.

Is later Rookwood worth anything?

Later Rookwood from the 1930s to 1950s, in plain production glazes, usually sells for $100 to $250 and often sells in groups. It is genuine Rookwood but it is not the part of the market that carries value.

Where can I sell Rookwood pottery?

Auction reaches the collectors who follow Rookwood by decorator, which is where the competitive prices come from. Revere Auctions provides free auction estimates: send photographs of the piece and the full base, and our specialists will respond with a valuation.

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