Do These Have Any Value?

Hi! New member here that would appreciate an expert evaluation of my recent acquisitions. I want to be clear that, for now, none of these are for sale. Thanks in advance for any help anyone may be willing to offer.

[ Edited by: Tiki Kookie 2013-10-22 06:31 ]

These all look to be new (reproductions) from China that are mass produced currently
can you tell us what labels or writing is on the bottom of the mugs?

It was difficult to capture images of the bottoms. I'm using my iPhone in less than perfect conditions. All the cups are marked on the bottom with O of H nomenclature that matches what's on the carton label. Below are a couple images from the bottoms of one each of the Tikis and the Volcano Bowl. I acquired these at a yard sale from a very elderly Asian couple who owned a Polynesian restaurant in D.C. that, they said, closed in the 70's. The cartons also look pretty old which makes me doubt they're recent reproductions.

[ Edited by: Tiki Kookie 2013-10-22 06:31 ]

[ Edited by: Tiki Kookie 2013-10-22 06:33 ]

Okay, they are '70's vintage, but very common. They would not be featured prominently in anyone's collection, but they're great for daily use. I routinely pay 5 bucks for the mugs, but NIB you should probably be able to get $10. The Scorpion Bowls, I would say between $20-$30.

I don't think I have a Scorpian Bowl, I thought what I had was called a Volcano Bowl. Is that accurate or is what I have a Scorpian Bowl? Thanks for your help.

Yes, that's a volcano bowl, due to the volcano. We tend to use the term Scorpion Bowl loosely in these parts.

Yes they are all very common. Here is a link to the Fu Manchu mug with another mug for $8 BIN.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Two-ceramic-tiki-mugs-Fu-Manchu-and-Harveys-Lake-Tahoe-/111189754188?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item19e36d014c

I had purchased 2 of those volcano bowls along with 20 other tiki mugs for $40 off of Craigslist.

I would guess if you can get $5 for the mugs and $30 for the volcano bowl, you would be lucky. It is pretty easy to check ebay for actual mug prices since mugs are readily available always on ebay. Type in "tiki mug" and scroll through and you will find examples of these mugs. You can also go to "advanced search" and search the completed items to see if they are actually selling for these prices, or people are just pricing them too high to find a sucker. There are examples of people trying to sell the volcano bowl for $800, but (hopefully) no one is stupid enough to do that. You can still get these new for really cheap.

Sigh! You spelled Scorpion wrong!

On 2013-10-22 06:38, Tiki Kookie wrote:
I don't think I have a Scorpian Bowl, I thought what I had was called a Volcano Bowl. Is that accurate or is what I have a Scorpian Bowl? Thanks for your help.

I’d try to find out the name of that restaurant and maybe keep everything, common or not.
Nice finds!

[ Edited by: nui 'umi 'umi 2013-10-22 15:41 ]

But you can serve a "Scorpion" in a "Volcano Bowl" & still call it a Scorpion Bowl
since that is technically the drink you are serving & not the name of the bowl.

The brown mug is a Leilani mug, the number one most common tiki mug but original
The Hula-girl mug has her breast covered & that was only done with the reproduction
as far as I know.

[ Edited by: Atomic Tiki Punk 2013-10-22 14:59 ]

Ummm, ATP, sir? That's a Ku!

Well let me just put on my glasses then.......Oh my god most of you are men!

and you need to put your pants on!

21 days, ATP, but who's counting?!

[i]On 2013-10-22 14:56, Atomic Tiki Punk wrote:[/i
The brown mug is a Leilani mug, the number one most common tiki mug but original
[ Edited by: Atomic Tiki Punk 2013-10-22 14:59 ]

Lance, Common or not, I didn’t get my mitts on a leilani mug till years after I started collecting.I have 5 now-each one slightly different.
Cheers

On 2013-10-22 15:52, nui 'umi 'umi wrote:

Lance, Common or not, I didn’t get my mitts on a leilani mug till years after I started collecting.I have 5 now-each one slightly different.
Cheers

David, I would of happily given some to you :)

[ Edited by: Atomic Tiki Punk 2013-10-22 16:17 ]

That Volcano is a classic and it is a damn shame I don't have one in my collection. Be proud.

I usually let drunk people take a Leilani home if they seem to be interested in tiki.

Ah bummer. I was hoping I'd hit the mother lode and would be able to retire. I have three boxes of the Fu Manchu, 17 cups total (1 broken), 2 boxes of the Hula Girls, 1 box of the Tikis and 1 Volcano Bowl (in the box). I guess I will post these on eBay eventually. Does having the original box with matching serial number and/or having sets of six increase the value at all or should I just ask for $5.00 a cup and sell everything individually? In total I paid $20.00 for all 36 cups so I don't need to make a bunch to see a profit. Thanks again for all the help.

Now if you posted a picture of the "Orchids" labels we could have told you right away what you had
and I thought these were not for sale?

I did kind of post the labels, they're there, very small, in the first set of pictures. So what do I have exactly? Re: selling them, I just got them this past Saturday at a yard sale. I really like the Tikis and the Volcano bowl so, unless they proved to be valuable, which apparently none of it is, I was always going to keep those. The Hula Girls and Fu Manchus don't do much for me so I'll probably list those on eBay. I hope I haven't misrepresented myself or my stuff, the comment in the first post is still accurate, nothing is currently for sale.

thank you for not selling them.

A collector may value an entire box worth with the label. They aren't particularly valuable pieces, but finding them "complete" like this isn't common. I'd certainly try listing them that way first, and then sell them individually if no one wants the lot.

On 2013-10-23 11:12, Tipsy McStagger wrote:
thank you for not selling them.

Not sure why your thanking me for not selling them. Is it because it would break forum rules to do so or because keeping them proves I value their aesthetic charm more than the money I might make from them (which I do) -or- Is there another reason? Tipsy McStagger! What a great handle!!!

[ Edited by: Tiki Kookie 2013-10-23 14:10 ]

tikikookie,

some people here dislike the idea when new people come on the forum, don't introduce themselves, ask a value of an item, and/or to sell an item, only to never be heard from again.

So by saying "they aren't for sale"....getting some knowledge and the value with some help from people here, and then saying "I'll sell them on ebay" rubs people the wrong way.

Personally I could care less, good luck with whatever you decide, just wanted to clear things up for ya.

They are going to be tough to sell anyway. I would just keep them, they will hold more value to you when you serve your friends Mai Tais in these mugs. Keeping them would be more worthwhile than the $30 or so you might make.

Even though they do not depict a tiki, I've always had a soft spot for the Fu Manchu mug. Apart from just looking cool, Tiki enthusiasts know this mug to be the proper vessel for serving the tropical drink "Dr. Funk". This drink is notable because, unlike most (perhaps all?) other tropical drinks, "Dr. Funk" has actual Polynesian roots. It's said to be invented by one Dr. Bernard Funk, a German physician who made his home in Samoa. The good doctor was at Robert Louis Stevenson's bedside when he passed away.

See this thread for more info. It's one of my favorites here on Tiki Central.
http://www.tikicentral.com/viewtopic.php?mode=viewtopic&topic=29020&forum=10

After seeing a Dr. Funk recipe in the Beachbum Berry Remixed book, I was inspired to buy a pair of Fu Manchu mugs off eBay so I could serve the drinks properly.

Kookie, nice bunch of mugs to start a collection! The volcano bowl is a cool find, I don't see them in the wild around here much. But what I really need to ask is who are the elderly asian couple who owned the polynesian restaurant in D.C. in the 70's?!! What restaurant?! Tell me! Go now! Are you back yet? No? Well get a move on! Come on I can't wait for ever! What's the news? Feed me, Kookie, feed me! But you can keep your comb.

aloha, tikicoma

DUH! Good question tikicoma! Someone should be trying to get their story.

Search this site for Diamond Head. You will find a defunct restaurant named Diamond Head. They had two restaurants in the D.C. area. Their menu shows most of the mugs you found except the Hula Girl.

Good Luck with your search

Mahalo,

TikiVato

[ Edited by: TikiVato 2013-10-23 19:20 ]

Ha! After I go on and on about the Fu Manchu mugs being used for Dr. Funk, turns out they used theirs for a drink called Lover's Potion. Oh well. Dr. Funk doesn't taste all that great anyway. :wink:

On 2013-10-23 19:19, TikiVato wrote:
Search this site for Diamond Head. You will find a defunct restaurant named Diamond Head. They had two restaurants in the D.C. area. Their menu shows most of the mugs you found except the Hula Girl.
TikiVato
[ Edited by: TikiVato 2013-10-23 19:20 ]

Way to snoop Joe!

On 2013-10-23 14:36, ErichTroudt wrote:
tikikookie,

some people here dislike the idea when new people come on the forum, don't introduce themselves, ask a value of an item, and/or to sell an item, only to never be heard from again.

So by saying "they aren't for sale"....getting some knowledge and the value with some help from people here, and then saying "I'll sell them on ebay" rubs people the wrong way.

Personally I could care less, good luck with whatever you decide, just wanted to clear things up for ya.

Aaah, ok, I can see that. Well, as mentioned elsewhere, I've already decided to keep the Tikis and Volcano bowl. I'm also going to now keep a box of the Fu Manchus (my wife will be thrilled). The other two boxes of Fu Manchus and two boxes of Hula Girls will most likely get posted. I just don't need nor do I have room for them.

On 2013-10-23 14:08, Tiki Kookie wrote:

On 2013-10-23 11:12, Tipsy McStagger wrote:
thank you for not selling them.

Not sure why your thanking me for not selling them. Is it because it would break forum rules to do so or because keeping them proves I value their aesthetic charm more than the money I might make from them (which I do) -or- Is there another reason? Tipsy McStagger! What a great handle!!!

[ Edited by: Tiki Kookie 2013-10-23 14:10 ]

I spent way too much on tiki mugs the past couple months- I dont need to be tempted to buy any more for awhile. so thanks for not selling them. :)