Amphora Compote Vase

Q. For years, I’ve been trying to get information about the maker of my covered “compote” vase. On two sides it has a raised decoration of a winged head, and there is a band of “jewels” on the tall stem. It is 12 inches high and the bowl is 8 1/2 inches in diameter. It is marked “Amphora” and “Made in Czecho-Slovakia.”

A. You have a piece of Amphora art pottery. Amphora began in 1892 as the firm of Reissner, Stellmacher & Kessel (R.S. & K.), located in Turn-Teplitz, Bohemia. Both the name of the company and the name of the country changed by the time your vase was made. Stellmacher and Kessel left, leaving Reissner as sole owner in 1911. He named the firm Amphora Werke Reissner. Turn-Teplitz became part of the newly created country of Czechoslovakia at the end of World War I in 1918. Amphora was nationalized by the Czech government in 1945. The firm made fine quality Art Nouveau and Art Deco pottery with interesting designs and innovative glazes. Your Egyptian-inspired vase was made sometime after the discovery of King Tutankhamen’s tomb in 1922. Value: $1,000 to $1,500.

Amphora art pottery is usually listed in price books, including KOVELS, under Teplitz. But the city of Teplitz is now called Trovany, and the country name is now the Czech Republic. Aren’t you glad you asked?

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