Everything has its day and its time, and Wedgwood China is no exception to the rule. Because the company is 250 years old there are patterns that were used to create dishware that simply no longer exist, but pieces of the dishware still do. People take such good care of their Wedgwood China and such good care went into their manufacture that many of the original pieces made in the very early days of the company are still in existence. The situation is this – when people die, they pass their Wedgwood China collections down to their heirs. During the course of history, pieces break or go missing. Thus, the value of a complete set dating back a long time is almost impossible to imagine. However, around the world there are organizations who try to match collections of Wedgwood to make complete sets. For later designs, it is easy to get fill-in pieces to restore your set to its original grandeur.
Wedgwood itself guarantees it will do its best to keep an inventory of all of its patterns on hand, to replace broken or lost pieces for customers who request them. But even these are not limitless and there are many of the countless designs that have run out and have become discontinued Wedgwood China. Once Wedgwood has officially discontinued a particular pattern, the prices for any and all existing pieces skyrocket.
There are numerous places of business all over the world that specialize in handling only discontinued Wedgwood China pieces for that serious collector or highly prized family heirloom collections missing one plate or teacup to make it complete. As you can probably imagine, a full set of a discontinued Wedgwood China pattern can be quite valuable. Check out the auction prices on older pieces and you’ll get an idea of what great, great Grandma’s China may be worth on today’s market.