Antique dishes come in all shapes and sizes, in diverse materials including silver, porcelain, and crystal. The range of dishes out there is also astonishing – a dish is technically classed as a shallow container that can be used for both cooking and serving food. So a dish can be pretty much anything you want it to be from casserole dishes to candy dishes and everything in between.
Collecting antique dishes is a fascinating hobby – it is incredible to think of the origins of an antique dish. Who ate these dishes? What kind of food was served to them? In what kinds of situations were they on display? Where did they come from and how did they get here?
Perhaps you have inherited or found an intriguing antique dish and you would like to know how much it’s worth. Or maybe you want to form a fine collection of antique dishes? You have come to the right place.
Here, we will go through the most valuable antique dishes, how to tell if dishes are worth anything, and a guide on buying and selling antique dishes. Antiques are generally classed as objects which were made more than 100 years ago, so we will be focusing on this kind of dish rather than vintage or retro dishes.
Most Valuable Antique Dishes: Round-Up List
Here is a quick antique dishes value list to give you an overview of the most expensive antique dishes out there.
- Porcelain: Qing Dynasty, Bleu de Hue, Meissen, Jihong Porcelain, Joseon Porcelain, Wedgwood, Spode
- Silver: Odiot, Georgian Period
- Other materials: bronze or pewter several hundred years old, rare slipware dishes, antique glassware and crystalware
Our antique dishes value list is by no means exhaustive but intended as a guide to some of the most expensive antique dishes around. The values listed are accurate ay the time of writing but are subject to change. The most important tip is to conduct thorough research on the particular dish you are interested in in order to get a good idea of how valuable it is.
Most Valuable Antique Dishes By Material
Due to the breadth of antique dishes on offer, we have split the most valuable and expensive antique dishes list into sections based on material. Antique dishes names will be listed along with their auction values and origins.
Porcelain
The most common category within porcelain is china or bone china. There are also common types of porcelain known as soft-paste and hard-paste. The question “how much is fine china worth” is incredibly difficult to answer as it depends on the type of dish, its condition, provenance, and notoriety of the brand or manufacturer. The most valuable fine china brands include:
- Qing Dynasty Porcelain – a Chinese Imperial Blue and White Porcelain Dragon Dish sold for $331,000 in January 2022! Another pair of Lemon-yellow-glazed Dishes from the same period sold for over $100,000 in June 2022!
- Bleu de Hue – a type of porcelain made in China but commissioned by the Vietnamese Court. This Bleu de Hue Porcelain Dish with a Pagoda Boat Scene sold for $25,000 in 2017!
- Portuguese Porcelain dishes in unusual shapes and patterns – a Set of Twelve Portuguese Basket Form Dishes sold for $17,000 in 2020!
- Meissen – such as these Meissen circular stands, circa 1725-30 which sold for over $36,000 in 2021!
- Jihong Porcelain
- Joseon Porcelain
Among these well-known porcelain brands are some of the most valuable china patterns including:
- Blue and White patterns such as Blue Willow Pattern and Spode Blue Italian
- Wedgwood Classic Jasperware and famous patterns such as the Fallow Deer Pattern and Florentine Pattern
- Mottahedeh Tobacco Leaf Pattern
- Countryware By Coalport – notable for their textured patterns
- Ming Dragon Red Meissen
- Flora Danica by Royal Copenhagen Porcelain – this Flora Danica Oval Serving Dish sold for $5,000 in 2011!
Silver
Antique silver dishes are also incredibly valuable and feature some of the most intricate designs of all antique dishes. Dishes from the Georgian era which would have been used for silver service, such as entrée dishes. Real antique silver is more valuable than more modern sterling silver.
Older antique dishes made by companies from England and France tend to be among the most valuable. Some examples include:
- These 19th Century Pair of French Odiot Silver Double Salt Dishes which sold for $12,000 in 2021!
- Another pair of George IV Silver Entrée Dishes and Covers which sold for over $10,000 in July 2022!
- Unusual, specialized dishes like these Georgian Sterling Silver Sweet Meat Dishes which fetched around $6,500 in September 2022!
Other Materials
You can find some pretty old antique dishes made from other metals such as bronze or pewter. For example, these ancient bronze dishes from the Hsuan Te period in China sold for $5,500 in 2016!
Rare slipware dishes can fetch a high price depending on their origin and age. For example, this English slipware bird dish from c. 1787 sold for over $19,000 in June 2022!
It’s more uncommon to find truly antique glassware as the use of this material for dishes only really became popular in the 1920s and 30s during the Art Deco and Art Nouveau trends during the Great Depression. However, there are some earlier examples such as this McKee Lamb Covered Dish in brown glass which sold for $3,500 in 2018! This unusual Bohemian Cut Glass Candy Dish in green glass and gilt also sold for $3,500 in 2017! A rare and exquisite Daum Nancy Glass Egg Shaped Dish sold for $3,500 again in 2017!
Antique crystalware dishes are also hard to come by. Those crafted by notable companies such as Baccarat can be particularly valuable. For example, these Baccarat Gilt Bronze Garniture de Table sold for $8,500 in 2020! While these Baccarat Cut Crystal Mounted Gilt Bronze Compotes sold for $6,000 in 2009!
How To Find The Value Of Antique Dishes
All antique dishes have something special to offer, and while some may fetch a higher price than others, it does not mean they are not valuable! But what antique dishes are worth money?
Some antique dishes are highly collectible and should be properly valued before being bought or sold, especially those made by notable manufacturers or those made from expensive materials like silver.
The most efficient way of checking the value of an antique dish is to get it appraised by a professional antiques and collectibles appraiser. Ideally, take the item to show an expert in person. If this is not possible there are plenty of appraisal services online – just make sure you find a reliable one! Bear in mind that appraisal will incur a fee. You may want to try and value a dish for yourself before seeking professional help. Here are some simple steps you can take:
1. Condition
Check the whole piece for cracks, chips, stains, faded areas, and repair work. Items in good condition will fetch top prices while those with damage are valued much lower. However, very rare items may still sell for a lot of money even when damaged.
2. Research Recent Sales
Searching through eBay and other online auction sites will give you a good idea of how much the item is selling for currently. Try to find the same type of dish in the same kind of condition as your piece.
3. Brand or Manufacturer
The brand or manufacturer will typically play a large role in the value of a dish. Well-known dishware companies, for example Lenox or Welmar in the case of china dishes, tend to fetch a higher value than obscure or unknown companies. Other key players to look out for include brands like Spode, Royal Copenhagen and others like Jihong, Meissen, and Qing Dynasty.
4. Pattern or Design
Patterns make a big difference to the value of dishes made from china, porcelain, earthenware and stoneware. Rare and sought after patterns such as genuine antique Blue Willow china will be highly valuable. Limited edition patterns and high quality hand-crafted designs are also more expensive than common, mass-produced designs.
Unusual designs, such as square cake dishes, or dishes used for unique purposes will also be worth more due to their novelty value and rarity.
5. Location
Some dishes, particularly china and porcelain dishes, from certain countries or regions are more highly valued than others due to their reputation and quality. For example, Limoges china is tied to its location which makes it highly collectible amongst serious collectors.
6. Age
As a general rule, the older the dish the more valuable it will be. This of course depends on condition – it is rare to find extremely old dishes in top condition, but these would be the most valuable theoretically. Antique dishes which are several hundred years old can fetch thousands of dollars at auction, such as Rose Medallion china.
Antique Dishes: Buying And Selling
Whether you want to start a beautiful antique dish collection or sell a dish that has come into your possession, we have assembled the best resources for doing so.
Before buying or selling, make sure you research the average market price for the particular dish you are buying or selling. Search thoroughly for the brand, size and pattern and try to find examples which have been sold in the same condition as your piece (or in your desired condition).
Check out Collector’s Weekly for useful background and live listings across different auction sites. Sellers and antique dishware enthusiasts share their stories and rare finds on this site.
The antiques section of eBay is a great place to get a gauge for the right price of your dish Filter the search results by material, condition, keywords, year produced, and more. This can be a useful tool in finding specific patterns or colors in your quest to find, for example blue antique dishes worth money.
Etsy sellers often list whole collections as one lot, allowing you to purchase a “starter set” if you are interested in forming a dish collection. Otherwise there are a great range of unique and rare dishes on offer here.
FAQs
What is the most valuable antique china?
Most experts would probably agree that Qing Dynasty china is the most valuable of all antique china. Check out our guide to The 5 Most Valuable Fine China Brands for more information.
How old do dishes have to be to be vintage?
Dishes older than 40 years old but younger than 100 years old are usually classed as vintage. Anything older than 100 years is technically antique, while objects from between 40 and 20 years old are retro. But be warned that this is a subjective and controversial issue!
What can you do with old antique dishes?
If your antique dishes are in good condition, even with a few chips or scratches, they may be worth some money. If you have valuable brands, patterns or materials, you can consider selling them through an auction house or antiques dealer, or online via eBay or Etsy for example. If you don’t want to sell your dishes or don’t think you would get much of a return on them at the present time, you could consider handing them down through the generations or giving them as presents to people you care about. If your dishes are in terrible condition, you could consider recycling them or using the smashed pieces to make some beautiful mosaic artwork. The possibilities are endless!
