Home >> Collecting >> Antiques

How to Identify an Antique Irish Porcelain Cigar Humidor

A humidor is designed to keep cigars and tobacco moist and ready to smoke. Porcelain and pottery humidors look somewhat like cookie jars, and may have a place inside the lid to hold a sponge that can provide moisture to the tobacco products stored inside. Since the founding of the village of Belleek in County Fermanagh in Ireland in 1857, Belleek has been synonymous with Irish pottery and porcelain. The Irish work became world renowned when Queen Victoria began to order the products in 1869. Many potters from the Irish pottery emigrated to the United States and began producing American Belleek.

Instructions

- 1
  Look at the stamp on the bottom of the humidor. Nearly all professionally produced pottery has been stamped since 1800 (prior to that potters used hand written symbols), so the stamp can tell you a lot about the porcelain.
- 2
  
  The registered trademark emblem has an "R" in a circle.
  
  Examine the details of the pottery stamp. Irish Belleek marks typically show an Irish wolfhound and a harp over a banner with "Belleek" written on it and a tower in the background. However, some of the earthenware products were marked with a simple harp or crown with a harp.
- 3
  Determine the age of the piece by identifying which mark is used. From 1863 to 1926 there were no numbers or registered trademark symbols (an "R" in a circle) on the Irish Belleek marks. The pieces prior to 1890 have a simple banner with "Belleek" on it and the examples after 1891 add another banner with the words: "Co Fermanagh Ireland" beneath the original mark. Between 1926 and 1955 production numbers appear beneath a circle crest with a Celtic knot pattern. After 1955 the stamp adds the registered trademark symbol.

Antiques