800 Jefferson St.       Burlington, IA 52601-5432      

I have never liked cold weather. I remember years ago when I lived in Minnesota, skiing and hockey were popular pass-times. I used to say that my favorite winter sport was mall shopping. Other than a trip to Maui, I can think of nothing better to wile away cold winter days than shopping inside a warm store…..a warm antique store, that is.

We have new items arriving every day. There is always something to see and memories to be relived. Come downtown to our store and shop, or just drop in for a visit. You can even pet the giant dog!

~ Linda

• Kazzie the Wonder Dog has sniffed out these currently running Special Discounts:
  
  • Dealer #17 10% off all Occupied Japan Items
  • Dealer #22 15% off all Trivets & Dolls
  • Dealer #26 15% off everything
  • Dealer #27 20% off all books; 10% off everything else
  • Dealer #60 20% off all items
• Discounts may be discontinued at the discretion of the dealers. Please take advantage of them while you can.
• The visual tour section has been recently updated. Please check it out.

Introduced in 1851 at London’s Crystal Palace Exhibition, Majolica is a type of Victorian pottery known for its lustrous glaze. The pieces, molded in high relief with vibrant colors, reflected the Victorian interest in the natural sciences. Decorations included insects, plants, and animals. Some of the pieces took on the shape of their subjects, such as teapots shaped like a cabbage. Dishes shaped realistically like leaves or shells were popular.

In order for pottery to earn the “Majolica” designation, it had to be made and decorated in a certain way. Items were fired at low temperatures to the biscuit stage, then painted with metal oxide glazes, then fired again. The process wasn’t cheap, but was still more cost effective than porcelain or china. It was popular in middle class Victorian English homes where the prevailing philosophy was that items should be decorative as well as functional. Majolica fell from favor at the turn of the century. Overproduction had made it common, and poorly manufactured pieces flooded the market.

The challenge to collectors today is that most of the pieces were not marked. Majolica has also been copied and reproduced. Because of the extensive variety of Majolica pieces produced, a collector usually specializes in a certain area by collecting like items, such as teapots, or concentrates on a special color or motif.

For more information about Majolica Pottery, please feel free to browse these offerings:

Q:   There aren't any links to buy anyting I see on your website. How do I buy something?
A:   All you need to do is contact us using the email link at the top right of every page and let us know which item you are interested in, and we will take care of the rest. For more information about the process please read the detailed buying page here.

Ed. Note:  Reader's Questions is a monthly feature so that our reader's can ask us their questions about antiques and collectibles.  If you have a question for one of our experts, please click here.  Previous questions can be found here.