With so many types and varieties of Wedgwood china out there, here are some helpful information and guidelines to assist you in your search!

1.  About Wedgwood: History and Types
2. What to Look For:  fakes and dating
3. Searching eBay for your treasure

1.  About Wedgwood: History and Types

Wedgwood is a British pottery firm founded by Josiah Wedgwood in the 18th century in Stoke on Trent in England .  Known for its quality and craftsmanship, Wedgwood in modern times produces everything from art pottery to everyday tableware.  Recently it also merged with Waterford crystal to become Waterford Wedgwood, though the marks and name on the china are still marked Wedgwood.

While there are a large and varied number of styles and patterns produced by the company, they can primarily be categorized into four different areas:

• Jasperware:  this is the most common type when non-collectors think of Wedgwood.   Traditionally a light blue base decorated with white scenes depicting scenes of Greek or Roman origin, these tend to primarily be decorative pieces.  Many tourist-related collectible pieces are produced within this jasperware styling.  Click here for samples of Jasperware .

• Queensware or Queen's Ware:  This is a specific type of dinnerware that was custom designed for one of England's Queens, it is typified by an embossed ivy leaf or similar border around the pieces.  While piece shapes, colors and borders vary slightly, through the years it has maintained its standard style.  Click here for samples of Queen's Ware .
  

• Collectibles: In addition, many items are also made by Wedgwood for collectors, including Christmas ornaments, annual plate series, commemorative items, tourist trinkets, figurines, pitchers, art pieces, and the like.

• Tableware: this category encompasses most of the remainder of Wedgwood products, particularly of modern origin.  Table settings, both formal and casual, are produced in this category.

2.  What to Look For: Fakes and Dating

When searching for Wedgwood pieces, there are a number of things to keep in mind to be sure that your purchase is of value.  First, you must keep in mind china basics: look out for cracks, chips and crazing (spidery veins along the porcelain).  Any of these three can either diminish or completely destroy the value of your item.  If you buy a damaged item, buy it for love, not out of an investment...and be sure to pay accordingly.

The advantage of collecting Wedgwood is that it was one of the few manufacturers of porcelain and china that 90 percent of the time marked their china with their name.  Either painted on or embossed on the bottom of the piece, Wedgwood pieces are usually clearly marked.  The true Wedgwood mark is either printed or embossed "Wedgwood England", "Wedgwood Made In England", "Wedgwood of Etruria & Barlaston" and/or an urn with a Wedgwood underneath it.  There are variations on the mark throughout the years, so it's a good idea to become familiar with the markings through the years so you can recognize them, but rarely has any picture other than an urn been depicted.  Often pattern names will be also printed onto the back of tableware, making for easy identification.
    

There are two primary things to look out for in regards to fakes and authenticating Wedgwood:
First, If an item is not marked, it's not likely to be Wedgwood unless it's very old.  At that point, you would need to get the seller to provide you with some verification that the item is indeed Wedgwood.  An occasional saucer in a set will not be marked, but you should be able to identify the pattern and validate it that way.   But if there isn't a mark, it's a good bet that it's not Wedgwood.

Second, look out for Wedgewood.  The true Wedgwood company does NOT spell the name with the E.  However, there is
another company, Enoch Wedgwood of Tunstall.  Their logo often includes a unicorn and regularly pieces are marked as Wedgwood & Co.  This is NOT WEDGWOOD and has little to no value.  Often making standard dinnerware or collectibles for Avon, only buy these pieces if you love them as they have almost no collector value.


It's helpful to read online for markings and buy a reference guide as well so you can become more familiar with Wedgwood styles, patterns and marks.

3.  Searching eBay for your treasure

When looking on eBay to find your Wedgwood item, the first thing is you do want to search for "Wedgwood" and "Wedgewood".  Although Wedgewood  technically is the fake, because many sellers don't know the difference, sometimes a legitimate Wedgwood item can be listed incorrectly.  You want to include "(wedgwood,wedgewood)" in your search to make sure that you get all of the potential items.

Similarly in your search, though, you can put a "-(enoch,tunstall)" to eliminate all of those items that are the "fake" or incorrect Wedgewood.

A key part of looking for Wedgwood on eBay is knowing the relative value of the items you're searching for.  As many of the items are available in duplicates, do a search on eBay through the completed items to see what previous items of that type are going for.  You want to make sure that when you bid, you are bidding in a price range that's accurate for the items.

You might also want to think about using a service like Esnipe that will bid for you at the last 10 seconds of your auction.  While you might get outbid, it lets you put the value that you actually want to pay and prevents any bidding wars at the end that inflate the price past its true value. 

Finally, enjoy your purchase!  Wedgwood produces lovely, beautiful items that enhance your home and table.  While some pieces are fragile, with the exception of some older pieces, they're usually replaceable, so use them and enjoy them!