14 Vintage Teapots That Are Worth a Small Fortune

Thrift shopping for hidden treasures might not bring teapots to mind, but some are surprisingly valuable. A lucky find at a garage sale or tucked away in family storage could be worth a small fortune to collectors.

Flipping underpriced antiques can be a great way to make cash on the side, and teapots are often overlooked.

Check out 14 vintage teapots to keep your eye out for.

The Midway Gardens was an entertainment facility that was designed by architect Frank Lloyd Wright, who also designed many decorative elements indoors—including the teapots.

The Frank Lloyd Wright Midway Gardens teapots are metal with a hinged lid and stamped with the Midway Gardens monogram. The last known sale was in 2002 for what's estimated to be around $3,000 to $4,000, and most are now in either museums or private collections.

Christofle is a luxury silverware company that introduced silver plating to France, and If you spot a silver-plated teapot in the shape of a rotund wild hare, it could have an extremely high resale value.

One of these coveted animal teapots can sell for about $30,000, so they're a rare and museum-worthy find.

Paul Revere is best known for his midnight ride warning American Revolutionaries that British troops were approaching, but after the war, he returned to his regularly scheduled profession of silversmithing.

In the late 18th century he made a fluted, Neoclassical-style teapot that is now worth $225,000.

"Bachelor" style teapots which have a smaller capacity and often less ornate decorations have not changed significantly since the 18th century, judging by the looks of this Georgian-style antique teapot. The handle and detachable finial are carved from fruitwood that accents the elegant design and a flush jeweler's hinge marks the teapot as high-quality.

The bottom of the teapot is stamped with both the maker and a serial number. Finding one of these could put over $1,300 in your wallet.

Paul Storr was a silversmith renowned for his mastery of a grandiose neoclassical style that graced everything from simple tableware to the tables of royalty. 

If you find a teapot stamped with the initials "P S" on the bottom, it could be a major find. A family crest on the side could bump the price up even further as it likely indicates it was commissioned for a wealthy family.

His teapots go from thousands of dollars to tens of thousands of dollars, so always check for those initials on the bottom of silver teapots.

Christopher Dresser was influenced significantly by Japanese minimalist design, and his signature clean lines and streamlined shapes still seem at home with modern aesthetics. Keep an eye out for silver teapots featuring an ebony rod handle that is held in place by silver fixtures, a common feature of Dresser's work.

The teapots can range from hundreds to thousands of dollars, but a full tea set can fetch up to $34,500.

Sevres is a suburb of Paris famous for its production of porcelain. The teapots produced were marked with two blue interlaced and stylized Ls. 

In the center of the crossed Ls would be a letter to indicate the year it was produced, and above would be the mark of the painter who created the work.

If you see double Ls, it's a strong sign that the Sevres teapot is going to be worth more than average. The early porcelain pieces are worth tens of thousands of dollars now.

A pumpkin-shaped teapot would easily slide onto a modern Thanksgiving table, but if it's carved from stone it could be worth a lot of money.

This design from the Qing Dynasty is estimated to be 125 years old and worth nearly $20,000.

An archaic form of dragon decorates this silver teapot, and the import mark of a crowned V indicates this piece was created in the Netherlands during the 19th century. This Meiji period had several great masters, so any intricately decorated teapots with the mark should be investigated for potential value.

The dragon motif teapot is valued at around $12,000, and a similar teapot with a phoenix motif sold for over $15,000.

In the 1980s a shipwreck was discovered that contained a Chinese shipment of porcelain, now known as the Hatcher Collection. It contained roughly 23,000 pieces from 1644 which were auctioned off in 1984.

The Hatcher Collection has a characteristic underglaze in blue and white that is commonly found in Chinese porcelain from the 17th century. Any porcelain from this collection is likely worth a pretty penny, ranging from hundreds of dollars to tens of thousands.

A stylized chicken teapot might seem thoroughly modern, but check the bottom for a GJ monogram impressed into the porcelain. Those little initials could be the difference between a novelty teapot and a valuable collectible.

These rooster teapots by George Jones Majolica can be worth over $4,000.

Silver teapots stamped with "L. Cary" could be worth thousands of dollars. Cary was an active silversmith in the Boston, MA area from 1820 to 1832 and is predominantly remembered for the silver works he created for churches in the region.

A tiny WB and JW on the bottom of a silver teapot indicates the makers were William Bottle and Jeremiah Wilsher, who were active around 1799.

Even teapots with replacement parts can be worth thousands, so don't fret if it's not the original wooden handle.

The best way to check a secondhand teapot for value is by looking on the bottom for a maker's mark that will let you look up when it was made and what the selling price is for other pieces by that person or company. 

Antique teapots come in all shapes and sizes, so it's worth taking a few extra minutes to peruse teapots when at a thrift shop.

Flipping undervalued antiques that wind up in thrift stores can be an interesting way to make extra money on the side, as long as you know what signs indicate hidden value.