A few years ago, when the price of majolica was a its peak, collecting majolica butter pats was as expensive, if not more expensive, than collecting majolica plates or platters. It was not uncommon to see these tiny plates bring several hundred dollars a piece at auctions and antique shows. Since then the market has leveled out quite a bit and the prices of most pats has come down from the astronomical levels of that time to a somewhat more reasonable level. That's not to say that you won't still come across pats that command high prices because you will but unlike then, you can still put together a nice little collection of butter pats without mortgaging the house.
Butter pats, also referred to as butter chips, are tiny little plates used at the well set Victorian table to hold butter. Like everything else, Victorians had a special serving piece to hold your butter, the butter pat. They were made in all kinds of ceramic bodies and can be found in transfer ware, flow blue, ironstone, etc. of which the most colorful were majolica.
Every major majolica manufacturer made them and the variety can be staggering.
Butter pats, also referred to as butter chips, are tiny little plates used at the well set Victorian table to hold butter. Like everything else, Victorians had a special serving piece to hold your butter, the butter pat. They were made in all kinds of ceramic bodies and can be found in transfer ware, flow blue, ironstone, etc. of which the most colorful were majolica.
Every major majolica manufacturer made them and the variety can be staggering.
Wedgwood
George Jones
Wedgwood
Adams & Bromley
Joseph Holdcroft
Wedgwood
Etruscan
Etruscan
Etruscan
Hawley & Co.
George Jones
Holdcroft
Fielding
Etruscan
Etruscan
Fielding
Shorter & Boulton
Etruscan
Tenuous
Wedgwood
Tenuous
Copeland
Holdcroft
Etruscan
Etruscan
Etruscan
Etruscan
Etruscan
Wedgwood
Holdcroft
Tenuous
Samuel Lear
George Jones
Etruscan
Fielding
Hawley & Co.
Fielding
Fielding
Joseph Holdcroft
Adams & Bromley
Attributed to Hawley & Co.
Samuel Lear
So what constitutes a collectable, desirable butter pat? Just about anything! Like in any other type of majolica color, condition, design and rarity will affect the price. Name manufacturers also affect price. The two colorful Jones pats shown above can command prices of $250-$400. Colorful Wedgwood and Holdcroft pats generally bring around $100-$200 on the retail level, as do some of the more desirable Fielding and Etruscan pats. The others generally bring in the $25-$100 range.
The majority of majolica pats that are fresh to the market will require cleaning. The fat inside the butter will discolor the pat significantly. You should either clean them yourself using hydrogen peroxide and great care with the directions we supplied in this blog or have a professional restorationist do it for you. Only then can the full beauty of the majolica colors shine through.
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