The New England Steiners’ Beer Stein Collecting Mr. Stuart Weiss
Do you support brewing in general? It’s the ideal moment to toast to this well-liked beverage with origins reaching back to 5000 BCE as the holidays draw near. Since 1965, Stein Collectors International has promoted and researched steins and mugs as an essential component of the beer experience. To find out more about this fascinating hobby, Auction Daily got in touch with Stuart Weiss, Sr., the President of the New England Steiners beer a branch of SCI.
Mr. Stuart Weiss: The New England Steiners’ president is me. For more than 50 years, I have been amassing beer steins. Serious collectors typically have 50 or more steins in their collection, and these steins were typically created beer stein collectors ween 1880 and 1920, according to the definition of a hobby. I have kept up a collection of 200 or so steins. The amount of room I have to display the steins in my “Stein Room” influences the size of my collection in certain ways. The most accurate way to characterise my collection is eclectic. Personally, I look for steins whose artistic merit I find appealing or whose subject matter matches my interests. Other collectors might exclusively buy from a single manufacturer, or from specific artists, time periods, materials, etc.
Stuart Weiss, Sr.: As part of the pastime, buyers also purchase figurines, plaques, paintings, black forest wood carvings and clocks, lusterweibchens (traditionally themed antler and carved wooden chandeliers), drinking horns, flasks, pipes, wine casks, and tall drinking cups called pokals. To put it another way, we gather just about anything that fits into the Germanic subgenre.
where to sell beer steins? It’s a buyer’s market right now. Everything was revolutionised by eBay; items that were once difficult to find may now be bought with a few clicks. As a result, the majority of antiques, collectibles, and beer steins have lost value, some more so than others. For instance, the more widespread steins, such as pottery and print under glaze (PUGS), have lost the most value. Only the finest and rarest specimens have increased in value, fetching five figures.
Stuart Weiss, Sr.: A silver stein was auctioned at a rural auction I attended in a German town in upstate New York a few years ago. It was exquisitely cloisonné. I was aware of its quality but had no idea just how good. At $5,000, I was the under bidder. It is difficult to estimate what it may have sold for if I had continued to bid. The owner or a shill could have been my completion. The same stein turned found at a stein auction a few years later and sold for almost $100,000!
I can think of another Tiffany stein. It was a sizable ivory tusk with silver mounting and gem inlays, measuring around ten inches in circumference. Estimate for the sale was $150,000, however
A daily auction: Do collectors actually drink from or perform ceremonies in their steins? Or do they store them behind glass or on shelves like other priceless collectibles?
Stuart Weiss, Sr.: Today, most steins are bought primarily for exhibition. When drinking a beer, the lids frequently get in the way. However, at an Oktoberfest or Maifest (the traditional German celebration of the coming of spring), it is entertaining to drink from a stein without a cover. Simply put, it is preferable to drinking from a plastic cup.
Mr. Stuart Weiss: Joining a collectors group like ours is the best way to learn about steins. Our members are spread out around New England, and their ages range from 40 to over 80. We meet every three months in different parts of New England, but for now we have to use Zoom due to COVID issues.
