Walt

The stein may have been made by a company *in* Mettlach, but it was most definietly not made by the company known as Mettlach (a term which actually refers to the factory of Villeroy & Boch in Mettlach). Or, the stamped mark may be completely fraudulent.

Look in the READING room, there are a lot of articles for every level of collector.

Hi William. Selling an entire collection is difficult, unless it contains steins that collectors would fight over. Best bet to get fair advice is to post pictures publicly. If you are unable to post them into this forum, select a few choice ones and send them to the webmaster of this site who will post them for you.

Walt

There are always subtleties and oddities of language, but “made in China” means Chinese.

Let me add a few more thoughts about this. Have you ever seen a mark that reads “made in pottery” (or stoneware, or wood, or pewter)? No, it would read “made of pottery” (or more likely, simply “pottery”). The only reason this question arose is because of the unique double meaning of the word “china” (or “China”). If it says “made in China”, it is Chinese. The more legitimate dilemma is how to interpret a marking which reads “China.”

The term “china,” when referring to the material, is an Americanism. Trust the Americans who are telling you that “made in China” never means “made of china,” it always means “made in the country of China.”

Since the phrasing “made in” is in English, it means that the item, whatever it is made OF, was made IN China.

Ruthie, linking to a photo on your own computer is not going to work.

Although your post so far does not show any basis for suggesting the pitcher was used by Hitler, that is extremely unlikely, and in the absence of clear documented provenance will not add value to the item.

I am reluctant to try to place a value on your stein primarily because I do not collect this type. As I mentioned, the chip is pretty distracting, so value will be modest. Other collectors do watch this forum, so perhaps one of them who is interested will venture a value.

This stein is for the 23rd Infantry Regiment, 6th Company, garrisoned in Saargemunde. It is a Bavarian Regiment (lion, white and blue). The Reservist served for two years instead of the normal three, so he was apparently a volunteer or had a special skill which entitled him to a shorter period of service. I have to believe that the photo portrait is of the soldier himself.

Infantry regimentals are the most common branch of service, and Bavarian the most common of the infantry. Unless I miss something special about the stein, it is not worth a lot of money even in perfect condition, and the highly visible rim chip further detracts from its value.

Assuming this is indeed a portrait of your great grandfather, I urge you to keep it as a family treasure. It is irreplaceable to you.

It also looks like it might have a Stanhope, a glass rod which has a photo glued to one end. If in fact this looks like a glass rod, try looking through it to see if there is a scene.

Was your grandfather named Jacob? Jacob had a brewery in New York. Philip? Philip owned a brewery in Kingston NY. Knowing more about the brewery would enhance interest among collectors.

Here are eight photos I received from francatan.

a pair of 32L Gerz and pair of 12L King Werk steins in francatan’s personal collection

pair of 32L Gerz and 1 12L King Werk nearer vision

39L Girmscheid stein close to pair of 32L Gerz in a Germany stein shop (photo very old)

39L Girmscheid stein glazed salt beige color no more manufactured.

Girmscheid 24L close to a Gerz 32L – steins with lids

Girmscheid 24L close to a Gerz 32L – steins without lids

Girmscheid 24L close to a Gerz 32L – another view

Girmscheid 24L close to a Gerz 32L – just the lids

• This reply was modified 10 months, 4 weeks ago by  Walt.
• This reply was modified 10 months, 4 weeks ago by  Walt.

…or GK? I’m a little suspicious of the line across the top which makes it look like an R, but possibly part of the background.

There are some amateurish pewter engravings perhaps done with a Dremel which detract from an otherwise attractive stein, but by and large the engraving on a lid does not affect value one way or the other. Personally, I like the personalization which often sheds light on the meaning of the stein to the original owner.

Regarding GK – some things remain a mystery 120+ years later. See
http://www.steinmarks.co.uk/pages/pv.asp?p=stein485

Years ago I asked a knowledgeable collector how to tell if a stein was old or not. His answer was quite disappointing—”You just look at it.” Over the years as I gained knowledge, his statement has become much more sensible to me. What I mean by that is that I no longer have to look for specific clues, the answer is apparent. The style, particularly the coloration of the King Gambrinus stein is not the sort of things being produced today. No company today would produce a stein that does not show their corporate identity on the base. The base and the body of the stein both show marks accumulated over years of being both used and passed from owner to owner. The pewter of the lid is nicely patinated.

I hope this helps.