The Yates' Original Vintage Mid-Century Miniature Art Pottery Estate Collection

Items for sale in this listing:
Lot of 3: Vase, Flask/Bottle and Pair of Earrings by William & Helen Yates, 1971-1972

The bottoms are signed "Yates 1971" and a 3-digit inventory number. The earrings are undated.

There are normal signs of age and original flaws, but no damage.

The flask is 3-1/2" tall, the vase is 3" and the earrings are 1-1/4"

*This listing is for the items shown in the Main Photo only. The paperwork and groupings shown in the last 3 photos are not for sale, but included here for the buyer's reference, and to provide context for the items in the listing.
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About the collection:
All of the designs and glazes are original creations by William & Helen Yates, made between 1957 and the early 1980s. There is no information on the Yates' to be found online, other than archives of a few pieces of unidentified "Yates" vases that were sold on eBay over the years. This is the first time the Yates Miniature Pottery has been identified and presented online.

In the late 1960s and 1970s William and Helen Yates had a mail order business selling their original miniature pottery pieces for $1.00 each. They exhibited at art fairs and eventually had a pottery shop that was open on weekends in Fort Loudon, PA. They worked in Baltimore, MD and later in York, PA. It appears that they stopped exhibiting at art shows in the mid-1980s and stopped making art pottery in the late 1970s (the 1980s pieces are "cute" ceramic jewelry and ornaments, likely aimed at the changing tastes of audiences attending art fairs in the 1980s versus the 1960s).

We acquired the Yates' remaining inventory from a relative who had inherited it and did not know what to do with so much pottery. She decided that she wanted it to be treasured and enjoyed, rather than sit around in storage, where it had been for many years. The paperwork that was found with the pottery provides us with some background:

William and Helen Yates were actively creating original ceramics starting in the late 1950s and stopped by the early-to-mid 1980s. There is a peak period of creation and production from 1969-1974, when they were advertising in Yankee Magazine for mail orders (see documentation pictures) and exhibiting at art shows. The glazes became much more interesting at this time and there's a wide variety colors and forms. These pieces will be the most common, yet also the most visually interesting.

There are probably hundreds, or even thousands, of pottery pieces signed "Yates," yet still no one knows who William & Helen Yates were. William B. Yates may have worked for NASA, and Helen seems to have been employed at John's Hopkins in Baltimore. Their "ceramics business" was obviously about a passion for the artwork, rather than a vehicle to promote themselves or even make money, so we are left with an amazing collection of art, and very little legacy surrounding The Yates' and their miniature pottery.

We are pleased to have been able to solve a mystery and share a 25-year overview of the Yates' art pottery that was in their own collection, including a few rare, early pieces which were made before they became established. See our eBay store where there is a category for Yates' Miniature Pottery to view everything that we have available.