If Josiah Wedgwood were alive today, even he would be surprised at the large sums of money changing hands for some of his early work. Still intact, still complete early collections are practically priceless, especially the ones owned by royalty and celebrities. Many have come up for auction at prestigious auction houses around the world and have garnered quite a large amount of interest from well-heeled investors seeing for something thoughprovoking to spend their money on.
There is a line in the sand when it comes to placing a value on Wedgwood China and that line is 1949. After Josiah died, several generations of Wedgwood's sons and other relatives ran the business, which was never no ifs ands or buts the same. Obviously, the former pieces created by Josiah are the oldest and the most vital ones in existence. That being said, after struggling straight through wars, economic downturns, competition and mismanagement, the product line changed drastically when Josiah Wedgwood V was forced to update the factory.
He started building in 1938, was interrupted by World War Ii and completed the new facility in 1949 after the war. Therefore, all Wedgwood China produced in the new factory, beginning with the first pieces that rolled off the yield lines in 1949 are of significantly less value than pieces produced in the old facility prior to that time. This, of course, does not factor into inventory who may have owned a singular range or its condition at the time of sale. But for two similar collections, one prior to 1949 will be worth substantially more than one produced in the new factory. There are some very expensive, very gorgeous and very sought after collections produced in the new facility that still fetch a high price when they are offered for sale.
This is a factor of the success of the design, the prior possession and the availability of pieces from that line and still, if it was produced in the old factory, it will plainly be worth more.
