Q:  We have a six-piece espresso set of bone china from Austria with this blue line symbol on the bottom. The set includes an espresso/teapot, sugar with lid, milk server, tea plate, and cup and saucer. The saucer has “Veilchen” written in gold under the mark and the lattice-edge plate has “Tausendschonchen” written on it. The set was a present to my late mother and we are looking to sell it. We can’t find this set on your website. We’d like to get an estimated price in Australian dollars.

A: This is the Meissen crossed swords mark. Meissen porcelain has been made by several factories in the German town of Meissen since 1710. The most famous Meissen factory used this mark, but it’s also been copied by other companies. The words “Tausendschonchen” and “Veilchen” are German for “thousand gifts” and “violet” and are the pattern names. The lattice edge plate was  probably not part of the set originally. Although you might not find your exact item on our website, you can get a general idea of what Meissen pieces sell for by checking prices for the items listed. Prices listed on our site are in U.S. dollars, but you can use a currency converter on the internet to see how much they are in Australian dollars. One U.S. dollar equals about 1.48 Australian dollar. The lattice plate would sell for about $50. The retail value of the espresso set is about $250.