J. K. Decor Carlsbad

Q: I inherited twelve place settings and several serving pieces of this porcelain dinnerware. It’s marked with this blue mark and “Made in Germany” and also has a sticker that says “J.K. Decor Carlsbad.” Can you tell me something about it and what it’s worth?

A: The design of courting couples on your dishes is often called the Fragonard Love Story or Fragonard Courting Couples. It was supposedly inspired by the works of Jean Honore Fragonard (1732-1806), a French painter. It’s been made in several versions, with different colors used for the center section and a decal of the couple in the center. The blue mark that looks like a shield is the manufacturer’s mark. It looks similar to the beehive mark used by the Royal Vienna Porcelain factory from 1774 to 1864, but it is not their mark. The mark was copied by many other companies to make their porcelain seem more desirable. The label is that of Joseph Kuba, a decorating company in business from 1930 to 1989. This version of the label or mark was used from 1930 to 1945. The set is so large it could be worth over a thousand dollars. Individual pieces sell for $55 for a cup and saucer to $125 for a dinner plate.