I recently watched the TV show called “30 Rock” and as always, laughed out loud. One of my all-time favorite episodes is when Jack Donaghy (Alec Baldwin) confesses to a skeleton in his closet. Not the fact this his cousin fixes NBA games, or his mother is a racist, or other such declarations – but the fact that he has a cookie jar collection! As a top level executive, that is evidently a real ‘no-no.’ Not one I was aware of, but then I’ve never been a top level exec, nor collected cookie jars.
Years ago, when we got into our first antique mall (renting a booth), the owners had quite a collection. Cookie jars were all over the shelves around the check-out area. None were for sale, just for viewing and they brought a lot of comments and even some pretty high offers. But they declined, these were their own collection. When they eventually sold the business, they decided to divest themselves of some and put sale tags on about half of them. Many sold very quickly, and at some staggering prices. We have watched through the years and thought that maybe interest was fading but have recently noticed that some sell for a pretty penny on the net and in the antique malls we visit.

One of my favorites is Popeye and the one I show has the original corn-cob pipe. He has a bit of a scowl on his face, but you know that old sailor-man is actually an old softie. Especially when Miss Oyl is around.
Another fun cookie jar is this turn-about! It features a body with two ‘fronts’ and a head that has two sides, so you get two characters in one. How cool is that?

I purchased a Warman’s Cookie Jar book a few years back and it is quite helpful. It has a lot of pictures and identifies them by makers, shows the years they were made and their sizes. There are values stated as well – sometimes a general range. We did some comparisons and while the book prices are generally higher than what you find on the net or in stores, there is definitely some correlation. The high end McCoy jars do command top dollar. But they must be the “real McCoy”, there are some fakers out there you know. Some of the highest ones are those by Van Telligen and their Peek-a-Boo jar demands a bigger dollar amount than most; $950 in the book! The book does show a reproduction of this one so buyer beware. Pretty darn close!

Regal China’s Little Red Riding Hood is another expensive one! It sells for approx. $600-700, and once again, there is a reproduction-alert. Years back I found a top to one. Had a chip or two, a crack down the back, but still OK. Listed it on ebay and it sold for almost $100. What a shocker. I continue to watch for special ones but folks do tend to hang onto them. They are so charming.

Black Memorabelia continues to be a hot item and with the ‘mammy’ on cookie jars, the sky is the limit. This one by Gilner pottery has a value of $1500! Once again, reproductions are out there.
This leprechaun one is cute. And it is a bit of a cross-over since folks of Irish descent will find it very desirable, not just those who like the jars.
As with all collections, you try to find the best example you can. But even if there is a little chip or ding or hairline, they are valued. These are usually on shelves, up high so no child can grab them, or in curios so dusting is not an immediate need. So a little boo-boo is not a problem.
I guess I do understand many of the characters. The Disney ones, there are a lot of people that love piggies, cows or such. Some show trains or other vehicles, some even have western themes, or military depictions. And everyone has a favorite breed of dog! But one with asparagus? Now that was mystery to me. But then I remembered a sale I made a while back. I bought a very old pottery canister jar with the word “PRUNES” on it. It sold on ebay and when received, the lady sent me this note “Thanks for the best cookie jar I’ve ever had – no one eats my treats anymore!” So, maybe the asparagus is the same concept, who knows?

Many cookie jar collectors answers the question, “What jar started it all?” with some variation of, “Grandmother’s cookie jar.”

I myself do not collect cookie jars — yet. The answer for “Why not?” is that I have not yet found my grandmother’s cookie jar which we all called ‘the cookie lady.’ (Sadly, no one in my family has grandma’s cookie lady. Upon my grandmother’s death my grandfather was found taking a sledge hammer to her belongings to sort out his grief. A terrible loss turned into additional losses for us all.)

Perhaps the connection between grandmother’s and cookies is more anecdotal than scientific, but it is a strong one. I simply cannot start my collection without finding grandma’s jar. Anything else would be sacrilegious.

Like many lost family heirlooms, cookie lady was never turned upside down to find her maker’s mark and so finding her is all about searching by her description. Cookie Lady was a ceramic cookie jar who resembled Raggedy Ann, only her hair was yellow. She looks quite a bit like this one… but not quite. (I don’t recall the flowers on her apron, and the hair was lighter — though the tilt of the head and blue of the dress seem just right.)

Being unable to find Cookie Lady has been frustrating. Not only do I not have her, but I’ve found (too) many other cookie jars to covet.

This is the wonderful thing about cookie jars — they come in nearly every character, style, and theme you can imagine.

Cookie jars have been around a long time having evolved from the British biscuit jars of the 1800’s. The decorative cookie jars first appeared on the Americana scene during the early 1930s when Depression Era housewives began baking more cookies at home rather than buying them at the bakery and so needed a container to store them and keep them fresh. Most of these cookie jars were pottery pieces which looked like bean pots. But by the 1940s figural cookie jars were being made. These cookie jars of animals, fruits, vegetables, people and other objects not only became very popular then, they created the cookie jar collecting craze of today.

Many of these vintage cookie jars now have their decorative paint worn off. This is because they were ‘cold painted.’ Cold paint refers to paint applied after the pottery piece has been both glazed and fired. Because this painting is done after firing and is not fired (heated) itself it is called cold paint. While this was commonly done to save money for the pottery makers, what you have is paint applied over a glaze so it easily washes off. Because this was such a common manufacturing method, most cookie jar collectors expect such wear and are more accepting of such missing paint than they are of chips. (Vintage pieces with cold paint intact obviously sell for much higher prices.)

The greatest output of American pottery cookie jars occurred from the 1940s to the mid 1970s and is called the golden period for American cookie jar production. While this period offered the most cookie jars, there simply are not enough to go around for collectors. This not only drives the prices up, but has created high demand for reproduction pottery cookie jars. (Tip: If the cold paint looks too good to be true, it may be a repro.) For those collectors who simply must have a cookie jar like grandma’s, this may be the only way to get one at an affordable price.

Even those who don’t have these vintage pieces in their memories are falling in love with the old storybook characters, vintage apples and other classic cookie jars.

While many kitchen gadgets have been replaced over the years and even salt and pepper shakers seem to be less decoratively stylized than in years gone by, cookie jars are still being made as whimsical and decorative pieces.

Along with reproductions of classic cookie jars there are artist cookie jars, new limited edition cookie jars, and many other new decorative cookie jars made every year. Nearly every Disney character has a cookie jar. As does almost every family movie released now a days — including action figure and Star Wars cookie jars. And we even have musical and talking cookie jars too.

In fact, cookie jars are so popular that they are one of the few household items which actually gain in value.

Even those with no real love of cookie jars may find themselves adding a jar to their collection. Along with the obvious areas of animal and character collections (Collin, need a Batman Cookie Jar?), there are celebrity cookie jars, advertising cookie jars, holiday and seaonal cookie jars, and even cultural cookie jars (including Black Americana cookie jars). Others may find themselves adding cookie jars to their McCoy or other pottery or glass collections. And of course, those who collect dishes or tableware may find themselves quickly lured into the matching cookie jar. (Once I find a copy of the Cookie Lady, I can then add the Jack & The Beanstalk cookie jar to my Batlin collection.)

Made of plastic, glass, and ceramic, the best thing about cookie jars are their decorative charm. The negative things about collecting cookie jars are they are large, they need to be dusted, and they are so popular the prices can be quite high. But their charm, variety and warm fuzzy memories outweigh space considerations, price and even dusting duties — making cookie jars place consistently top the lists of the most popular collectibles.

All of this begs the question, “When you’re the grandma, what’s your cookie jar going to be?”

Remember, it’s going to live on forever in memory, so chose wisely!

My mother-in-law gave us this cute Raggedy Andy cookie jar this past summer. It’s the very same jar that my husband swiped cookies from when he was a child, and now our kids are following the tradition. When I look at this well-loved and well-used jar perched on our kitchen counter, I can see how people fall in love with collecting cookie jars.

Their bright colors and fun designs make cookie jars popular with collectors. Cookie jars have been made in all sorts of styles, from whimsical cartoon characters to pretty floral designs. Some of the biggest names in pottery have created cookie jar designs, including McCoy, whose jars are highly sought after by collectors today.

The beginning collector will discover that there are a lot of great jars out there, and if you’re not careful with your selections you’ll soon find yourself drowning in cookie jars. It’s a good idea to narrow your focus. For example, you could build your collection around a certain style of cookie jar, such as television characters, or a certain manufacturer. While it may be difficult to focus when first starting out, as you become more knowledgeable about cookie jar collecting you’ll begin to notice which types of jars attract you the most.

When buying cookie jars, try to find them in the best shape possible. If you hope to sell your collection at some time in the future, jars with fewer flaws are bound to sell faster and fetch better prices. Of course, if you come across a rare jar that you know is valuable even with a few small chips, go ahead and pick it up. If the jar is missing its lid, then pass it over – it’s not worth much.

Books such as Warman’s Cookie Jars: Identification And Price Guide can be helpful for identifying the manufacturer, age and value of a collectible cookie jar. These are especially helpful to the beginning collector, who might not know which cookie jars are rare and which can be easily found.