The value of Capodimonte porcelain, like the value of any porcelain type or manufacturer of long standing, is difficult to determine. There are a number of reasons for this. Much as I would love to be able to provide you with a list of the figurines and their current values, I cannot. Here’s why:

1. Longevity of production: Capodimonte porcelain, either from the Royal Capo di Monte Porcelain Company or another, has been made for nearly three hundred years. For most of that time, records of the figures made and the numbers made of each were not kept or have been destroyed. Records from small companies using this style were probably sketchy to begin with, and if the company did not survive very long, they were thrown out. Companies achieving some success may have had better records, but they have probably not survived unless they were donated to a large museum or library. Even then, the cost of storing such records means they were probably not kept for long. Today’s manufacturer faces the same problems with their historical records, and it takes a real commitment by these companies to digitize the old paper records for the use of future generations of collectors and scholars. You have to really believe in your product to incur this kind of cost where no immediate or even long term benefit can be seen.

2. Exclusivity of design and techniques: Capodimonte, as the term is used today, is a style rather than a specific maker of porcelain figurines. Many companies from the Capo di Monte region of Italy can use the term fairly honestly, even if they are or were not affiliated with the Royal Capo di Monte Porcelain Company. And, since the style has remained popular for over two hundred years, it has many imitators. These may mark their products with a mark unlike any used by past Italian companies, but the unscrupulous use no mark or a mark similar to one of the successful Italian companies. This imitative production has been going on for so long and so widely that another classification of Capodimont has been established by collectors and dealers, Chinese Capodimonte. That does not mean that the Chinese are the only ones who have imitated Capodimonte and left their wares in question by not marking them, or that all Chinese porcelain manufacturers copy the Capodimonte with the intent of bilking collectors. Some are sufficiently proud of their version of the style to mark their pieces clearly, and if you like their take on the style, look for their mark on pieces you are considering buying. With the long run of the style, there are bound to have been honest manufacturers anywhere in the world. It is only the intent to pass off new figurines as those of the antique makers that constitutes the worst of the fraud.

3. Porcelain marks: Pieces without marks or unclear marks provide a cloud of confusion in which the porcelain dealer must tread warily when assigning value. Early manufacturers did not necessarily mark their products, or only marked those finished in-house. Blank figurines would be sold to other businesses to be finished as they saw fit, and were then marked (or not) by that company. There is also the problem of seconds, pieces that do not meet the manufacturer’s quality standards, but which are not destroyed, being sold as seconds. Any records for company production are unlikely to include seconds, as they are not considered true products of the porcelain company. These seconds may well have the manufacturer’s mark with some form of defacement to indicate the secondary quality. Porcelain marks are usually added before the last firing, and are therefore in place when the final inspection is made. Those pieces not passing inspection, if not destroyed, may have some over-mark to indicate the second quality, but as it is not fired on, it may be possible to remove the second indication. That is why one of the most important features in valuing any porcelain collectible is …

4. Quality: In the end, the quality of the modeling and painting are crucial in identifying the porcelain manufacturer and the value of the piece. The earliest figures from a new mold will be better than later figurines, as the mold deteriorates with time and use. The details are crisper on the early figurines from any single mold. Then there is the modeling of the additional parts, like flower petals and ribbons. The value of the piece depends on the competency of the person adding these parts. Finally, the painting is also a crucial part of the value in a porcelain figurine. Where the painters were allowed some leeway in the painting details, the pieces painted by some painters are more valuable than others. When the painter was allowed to mark his or her work, these marks can be used to identify the painter and the higher values assigned to pieces by the better painters. Where such marks are not used, only the experience of years can tell the evaluator who painted the figurine and which figures deserve a higher value because of the painter involved. Also, the best painters were recognized at the time and other painters within the same company would also try to copy the style, colors and techniques of the better painters, leading to more confusion if painters initials were not included in the marks on the pieces.

5. Reissue of popular or rare pieces: The same manufacturer may copy a figurine by making a new mold and copying the colors and details of the figurine in a re-issue. These are meant to allow more people to own the more desirable figurines, but also allows the unscrupulous to pass the new figurine off as the older, more valuable one. The differences the maker introduces to delineate the new model from the earlier one may not be public knowledge or readily identifiable. While re-issues are a an acknowledgment of past successes, they make the value of the original figurines that much harder to determine.

6. Damage and destruction: with porcelain, damage happens, as well as outright destruction. A figurines made in 500 pieces in year X may have been reduced to half by year X + 50, depending on the use of the figurine and its intended audience. Figurines used on desks or in kitchens, and those aimed at children will have higher destruction and damage rates. This affects the number of good figurines in existence, and therefore the value of the remaining perfect examples. This does not mean you should throw out any damaged figurines, only that restoration by a professional may increase the value of a damaged piece due to its being rarely or never found in perfect condition. This can be seen in Meissen figurines, many of which were broken in Europe through the two World Wars fought there. A perfect version of any one figurine may be so rare that even damaged ones have value.

From these considerations, you can see that collecting and valuing older porcelain pieces can be a minefield. If you are collecting on the secondary market, you should work with reputable dealers until you become sure of your own eye and knowledge. Any reputable dealer will offer some kind of money back or repurchase agreement, in writing, when you buy from them. If you are considering expensive pieces, they should come with a written valuation by a known expert that details any problems with the figurine and his or her opinion of value.

For modern products, the case is simpler. The piece will be in a limited edition, in which the total number of pieces in that design and size will be produced, at most, or one of an open edition, one that has no endpoint. A limited edition figurine should state the total number of pieces that will be produced and the number of your piece in that run. Lower numbers are better because of the mold deterioration, although new molds may be placed in production as needed by the manufacturer. I will have more to say about limited editions later.

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