November 23, 2008
Antique beer steins, mugs and tankards are prized for their craftsmanship and colorful ornamentation and scenes. They can be found in many styles and materials, including copper, pewter, silver, pottery, ivory, porcelain, glass and wood. Many steins were imported to the U.S. from Germany in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, especially from the city of Mettlach, whose potteries produced thousands of the vessels.
The beer stein had its origins in the mid-1500's along the Rhine river in Germany, when small towns began producing functional drinking vessels decorated by enameling and glazing. Each town or area adding their own flair or nuance. By the 1860's, factories around Westerwald and Dresden began producing ornamental steins for display, and continued doing so until WW1, from which the industry never fully recovered.
Lately there's been renewed interest in collecting beer steins with unique designs, including reproductions of works by famous artists. Designs reflect everything from historical battles to comical faces and even car racing and baseball. While many steins have been produced and marketed as collectibles, the most valuable continue to be pre-1900 handmade vessels.
I’ve been a beer stein collector for about 25 years. About 10 years ago I sold my business, a specialty dat… [more]
George Barone, an executive at Bank of America, is an avid collector of American beer coasters and the webmas… [more]
Though partially restricted to members-only, this site has a huge amount of free, publicly available and incredibly… [more]
The guys at the Connecticut Chapter of the Brewery Collectibles Club of America have created a full-on tribute to t… [more]
Assembled by Gunther Rademacher with the help of several other contributors, this collection of over half a million… [more]
This site features photos of beer advertising openers from the early 1900s, organized alphabetically by state. But … [more]
This pre-1965 collection is organized alphabetically by brand and contains scans of seemingly thousands of beautif… [more]
Norbert Lamping's collection of 600+ ceramic bottle stoppers, Hutter stoppers, swingtops, swivel stoppers, and ligh… [more]
A quick tour of pre-Prohibition bock beer label designs with nice, high resolution scans. Do the whole slide show o… [more]
This site features a fascinating variety of over 1000 beer bottle labels from around the world. Though focused main… [more]
Got a site to suggest? Let us know.
Are we missing one? Tell us.
634: Silver Tankard With Lid Made By John Burt$900.00 Ends in 18 hours 1 bid
Rare Rumph Covered Tankard Troll Naked Woman Lady $366.60 Ends in 11 hours 17 bids
Superb George Iii Silver 1 Pint Tankard - London 1783$302.25 Ends in 8 hours 12 bids
Antique German Lithopane Regimental 1915 Stein 0.5l$292.00 Ends Monday 6 bids
George Iii Solid Silver Pint Mug Or Tankard Dated 1780$291.88 Ends in 9 hours 16 bids
Limoges Jean Pouyat Jpl Tankard W Luster Ware Dragon Nr$256.99 Ends Tuesday 10 bids
Antique Georgian Sterling Tankard London 1761 England$255.00 Ends Monday 8 bids
Antique Royal Vienna Porcelain Stein Hand Painted$236.50 Ends Tuesday 8 bids
Budweiser Birds Of Prey - Osprey Stein$230.00 Ends in 11 hours 7 bids
Wwi German Military Regimental Lidded Beer Stein$224.50 Ends in 10 hours 10 bids
Mettlach No. 2717 The Target Beer Stein 1/2 Litre$224.50 Ends Thursday 7 bids
Antique Character Pig German Beer Stein$212.49 Ends in 7 hours 13 bids
Character Steins Clown Mkd. 987 By Reinhold Hanke$203.50 Ends in 14 hours 4 bids
Etched Mettlach Beer Stein, Great Condition, No. 2833 $200.09 Ends in 14 hours 5 bids
Budweiser Steins,trucks,cards,complete Series,rare$200.00 Ends Tuesday 7 bids
Pickard Artist Worth (seidel) "drinking Monk" Stein$199.99 Ends in 16 hours 1 bid
Super 19th Century Blue Stoneware Old Sleepy Eye Stein$178.50 Ends Tuesday 12 bids
1907 Blue Slip Stoneware Lowenbrau-keller Munchen Stein$177.50 Ends in 16 hours 8 bids
Gesschutzt 726 Vintage 1/2 Liter Mettlach? 19th C. ? $175.00 Ends Thursday 10 bids
1975 Cs1 Budman Budweiser Stein Bud Man Beer Stein Mug$169.99 Ends in 18 hours 17 bids
Mettlach Villeroy Boch 2005 Stein-star Of David Lid-n/r$157.50 Ends in 7 hours 5 bids
Nice Antique German Mettlach 1/2l Beer Stein #2185$157.50 Ends Tuesday 15 bids
1975 Solid Head Budman Bud Man Budweiser Beer Stein,mt$153.49 Ends in 15 hours 5 bids
1900s Germany Lidded Incised Stein Beer Garden Scene$152.50 Ends Monday 6 bids
German Character Stein - Ram In Barrel (309)$150.00 Ends in 17 hours 1 bid
* Bronze Frog Figurine Statue Barry Stein Sculpture Art$130.00 Ends in 17 hours 1 bid
Waterford Irish Crystal 16+ Ounce Beer Mug~stein~pint$127.50 Ends in 14 hours 14 bids
German Beer Stein Cornell University Scenes Ericp Mihan$127.50 Ends Tuesday 2 bids
1/2 Liter Mettlach Villeroy Boch Stein 1010/1909 Gnomes$112.50 Ends in 9 hours 3 bids
Cb2 Budweiser 1995 Collectors Club Lidded Stein$112.50 Ends in 14 hours 17 bids
Antique Mettlach Beer Stein #1037 Girl On Bicycle 1909$111.00 Ends Thursday 4 bids
Unusual Vintage German Figural Relief Lidded Beer Stein$107.50 Ends Wednesday 2 bids
1981 Budweiser Snowy Woodland Holiday Beer Stein Cs50 $105.00 Ends Monday 28 bids
Early Black Basalt Pottery Tankard / Cup ~ Wedgwood?$102.23 Ends in 9 hours 8 bids
Rare 1981 Budweiser Snowy Woodlands 2nd Holiday Stein$100.00 Ends in 11 hours 4 bids
1980 Budweiser Ceramarte 1st Holiday Stein Cs19 Mug$100.00 Ends in 14 hours 8 bids
Utica Club Schultz Stein (the Giant) 1st Ed Retired$100.00 Ends in 14 hours 20 bids
Rare Prattware Pearlware Quart Tankard Mint Cond. 1800!$100.00 Ends Monday 1 bid
Antique German Beer Stein Bartmann Coblenz C.1900$95.00 Ends Saturday 1 bid
Budweiser Beer Stein Snowy Woodland C Series Ceramarte$92.00 Ends in 12 hours 29 bids
1893 Mettlach Germany Schlitt Villeroy Boch Pokal Stein$92.00 Ends Tuesday 8 bids
Solid Silver Mug Or Tankard With Chester H'm Dated 1924$91.86 Ends in 9 hours 10 bids
1981 Budweiser Mug Stein Cs50 Cs-50 Snowy Woodland $91.01 Ends Monday 21 bids
Budweiser Holiday 1981 Cs-50 Mug Stein$91.00 Ends Wednesday 20 bids
1981 Budweiser Holiday Stein Cs50 Buy it Now$90.99 Ends in 17 hours 5 bids
Homer Laughlin Stein Ewer 12 1/2" Dreamland$89.00 Ends in 14 hours 1 bid
1981 Budweiser Holiday Stein / Mug Ceramarte Brazil$86.01 Ends Wednesday 15 bids
Budwesier Holiday Stein - 1981 Birch Tree$85.00 Ends in 16 hours 1 bid
Budweiser 1960-1979 Stein Cs-383 2000$84.99 Ends in 13 hours 1 bid
Budweiser 1980-1999 Stein Cs-387 2000$84.99 Ends Monday 2 bids
Original German Ww2 Beer Stein Immaculate Condition Mug$79.00 Ends Thursday 6 bids
1981 Budweiser Holiday Stein Snowy Woodland Excellent $78.55 Ends Wednesday 3 bids
