She planned to sell her old pot for $20. It just fetched $32K at auction.

[Mosby]

A 30-gallon stoneware crock sat in the corner of Lois Jurgens’s back porch for nearly three decades, collecting dust through Nebraska summers and snow through the winters. Her late husband used it as a makeshift table to rest grilling tongs and platters. They almost never thought of it.

On Jan. 10, that same crock sold at auction for $32,000.

“I just couldn’t believe it,” said Jurgens, who turned 91 on the day the crock was sold. “It’s the biggest thing I’ve ever gotten on my birthday.”

The crock was manufactured by Red Wing Stoneware, probably between 1877 and 1900. The nearly knee-high crock features molded side handles and a cobalt blue butterfly, along with the company name stamped twice. Unlike later models finished with a smoother zinc glaze, the crock is salt glazed, giving it a coarser texture. Despite its many years outdoors, it is still in good condition.

Wahsington Post Gift Link

[EYESORE 9001]

1. I don't subscribe to Bezos, so I can't see it

What a crock

[UpInArms]

3. Try this

https://archive.ph/COdoq

[EYESORE 9001]

4. Thanks!

I’ve seen crockery reminiscent of that one. I’ll have to start paying attention

[UpInArms]

2. Past the paywall

https://archive.ph/COdoq

[NeoTrajan]

5. Image ...

[bucolic_frolic]

6. That seems a bit of a fluke to me to fetch so much

at a small city or regional auction. The auctioneers did a great job of marketing surely. But a local big city auction I watch struggles to sell most stuff, it's common to see no bids. Not sure if they're strictly online. Maybe it's the stoneware, that is popular, fragile (that restricts supply over time) and it was a large piece.

[multigraincracker]

7. My best find was a watch I bought for $1.

Sold it for $400.