The This company was in business from 1954-1994. It was bought out by Enesco in 1994. Registered in NYC and San Francisco. Recognized by its gold diamond shaped sticker with OMC.
Otagiri imported wares from many Japanese kilns/companies. Most were marked with an OMC sticker. However some were produced especially for Otagiri and have an incised mark or a transfer mark with Otagiri. These appear to have been made around the mid 1970's to mid 1980's.
Imports from Japanese Kilns/companies include:
Kozangama (Mino)
UPDATE:
SEIZAN GAMA
***There is uncertainty even among Japanese sites as to the reading.
From comparison of the bone script characters, I am going with Seizan for this and another similar mark.
*These are similar but not exact. Both appear to be Sei in bone script, although on many Japanese sites the mark on the left uses the Ken reading.
Gold Imari (Nagoya)
Meito 明陶
Kutani 九谷
Seihogama 正峰窯
Soma Ware
Tetsusaburo Gama 哲三郎窯 (ARITA)
Touhou
Shibata Toki 柴田陶器
Incised and transfer marks
Thank you so Much! This was very helpful!
ReplyDeleteI am unable to find what I have online anywhere it has gold omc japan sticker on bottom it's 4 piece I know nothing about.
ReplyDeleteOtagiri Imported a lot and many without marks. They would buy in bulk so somewhere out there is a twin. Not everything ever made has made it on line. You might check the made in Japan series by white.
Deletethank you for sharing your knowledge. Have a great day.
ReplyDeleteThank you for your kind comment.
ReplyDeleteLooking for musical rabbit pushing cart with cabbages song played is "Oh What a Beautiful Morning". The Otagiri black and gold is on it and music still plays beautifully. Trying to locate it. thank you.
ReplyDeleteThis blog is just informational. I am not a dealer.
DeleteMy mark reads
ReplyDeleteC in a circle, OTAGIRI Japan and also a design like your 4th to the last picture. It's on a set of cats. I cannot find any info on value. Are they authentic?
I’m sure they are authentic. The c Inside the circle means copyright, for OMC.
DeleteI don’t do value…but let’s put it this way…it won’t increase your retirement savings by much ;).
Thank you for the info. I have a flower pot and saucer with the gold "Handcrafted" label. Is that from 1977? Wasn't sure how to interpret your Dec 5, 1977 notation.
ReplyDeleteThanks
That is when the mark/sticker was used or perhaps issued. I can’t remember, I researched this years ago. Mass produced exports are not really my area of expertise….just passed along something I found.
DeleteI do not know the answer. The OMC labels were sometimes a sticker, sometimes impressed or marked on the piece. I do not know if the color indicates the period or not.
ReplyDeleteI have some quails with a blue sticker, a marking stamped into the ceramic and no giant hole under. Haven’t been able to find any information on this. Seen anything like this?
ReplyDeleteIt’s hard to say. I can’t really answer individual questions in a blog format. Try joining a Facebook group like “Collecting Japanese Ceramics and Arts”
DeleteWonderful post, and it seemingly confirms something I long suspected: that Otagiri was actually one of those very Japanese companies, a trading company (basically a middleman) not a manufacturer. May I ask the source of your conclusion?
ReplyDeleteGiven that the different marks from different styles of Japanese ceramics on the wares sold with the OMC label it is obvious that OMC was an agent in distributing Japanese ceramics outside Japan.
DeleteVery curious to know if you or any of your followers know at what point in time Otagiri marked its mugs (C) Otagiri Japan, stamped into the bottom outer rim of the mugs. I have a photo, but don't know how to post it!
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately blogs are not very interactive. There is no way for followers to post. My gut feeling is that the stamp you describe was probably made in the last quarter of the 20thC. You can try a Facebook group like “Collecting Japanese Ceramics and Arts”, which is interactive.
Delete