Expert: Michelle Lieberman - 5/23/2009

Question
I have some 55 pieces, some sets, some singles, mostly tagged with handwriting stating Rogers Bros, Wm A Rogers Ltd., circa 1880-1910. Also some odd pieces with mfg. but no pattern identified. The Rogers Bros. includes Crown Pattern (C.1885), Nevada Pattern (c.1882), Lenox Pattern (c.1896), Princeton Pattern (c.1897), Lyonnaise Pattern (c.1880), Glenrose Pattern (c.1905) and Carnation Pattern (c.1907). How do I find value? Thank You.

Answer
Hello Steven.

You know some of the pattern names, so that's good.  You will want to identify the pattern names of the other pieces as well.  If you have a lot to ID, I recommend you get the book "Silverplated Flatware" by Tere Hagan.  If you don't want to go that route, you can go to replacements.com and search through the thumbnail photos by manufacturer, but it is a tedious process.

Once you know the pattern, you will also find prices at replacements.com.  But these are full-boat retail single-piece-at-a-time prices (in other words, they're really high).  You can also see what things are selling for on eBay (which will be really low) or other flatware replacement sites to get a good feel for the value.

Regards,
Michelle