Hummel Figurines: How to Identify the Mark and Find the Value

Someone left you a shelf of Hummel figurines, or you found one in a box, and you want to know two things: what is it, and is it worth anything?

This page answers both. The short version: turn it over first. Everything that decides a Hummel's value is stamped and incised on the base.

Jump to: the trademark table · what they sell for · the valuable ones · spotting fakes · photograph it

The honest answer first

Most Hummel figurines are worth less than their owners hope. A common figure with a 1970s or 1980s mark usually sells for roughly $20 to $60.

That surprises people, because Hummels were a serious collectible through the 1970s and 1980s. Prices peaked in the 1990s and then fell hard as the collectors aged out and supply flooded the secondhand market. Many pieces today sell for well under what they cost new.

The exceptions are real, though, and they are worth finding. Early marks, unusual sizes and discontinued moulds can be worth hundreds. The rest of this page is about telling which you have.

What a Hummel actually is

M.I. Hummel figurines are porcelain figures based on drawings by Sister Maria Innocentia Hummel, a Franciscan nun. They were produced by the Goebel factory in Germany from 1935.

That matters for identification: a genuine Hummel is a Goebel product. The base carries both the Goebel trademark and the M.I. Hummel signature.

Dating a Hummel from its trademark

The stamped trademark on the base is the single most useful thing on the figurine. Goebel changed it roughly every decade, so the mark brackets the production date.

Two quick shortcuts:

• "W. Germany" on the base means the piece predates 1990. After reunification the wording became simply "Germany". That one word separates the older half of production from the newer.
• The bee disappearing and reappearing is the easiest visual cue. No bee at all puts you in the 1979–1991 window.

Earlier generally means more valuable, but the mark alone does not make a piece valuable. A common design with a crown mark is worth more than the same design with a 1980s mark — it is still a common design.

Reading the mould number

Look for a number incised into the base — pressed into the clay before firing, not printed on top. It is often written as "Hum" plus digits.

That number identifies the design. A trailing slash and character gives the size variant:

Bigger sizes of the same design are usually scarcer and worth more. When you photograph the base, get the trademark and the mould number in the same shot.

What Hummel figurines actually sell for

Rough guidance for genuine pieces in clean, undamaged condition. Treat these as starting ranges, not appraisals — the market moves and condition dominates.

Annual plates, bells and most late-period pieces sit at the bottom of this range and frequently sell for under $20.

Which Hummels carry real money

Value concentrates in a few places:

• Pre-1960 marks. Crown and Full Bee pieces have a genuine collector base.
• Large size variants. The same figure at 10 inches can be worth several times the 4-inch version.
• Discontinued moulds. Designs withdrawn early had short production runs.
• Complete sets and original boxes. A boxed piece regularly beats an unboxed one.
• Documented oddities. Colour trials, factory samples and pieces with production errors.

If you think you have one of these, stop and get a specialist opinion. A photo estimate is the wrong tool for a four-figure object.

How to spot a fake Hummel

Genuine Hummels are widely copied. Check for all of these:

1. An incised mould number, pressed into the clay. Painted or printed numbers are a bad sign.
2. A stamped Goebel trademark matching one of the eras in the table above.
3. The M.I. Hummel signature on the base or the back of the figure.
4. Crisp painting. Genuine pieces have controlled, clean edges — especially on eyes and shoe detail.
5. Consistent mark and style. A trademark from one era on a design not produced then is a contradiction worth investigating.

Copies often get the look approximately right and the base badly wrong. The base is where to look.

Does condition really matter that much?

Yes, more than almost anything else. Collectors buy mint examples.

• A chipped finger, a missing flower or a repaired limb commonly halves the value.
• Hairline cracks are visible if you hold the piece up to a bright light.
• Restoration rarely pays for itself on a common figure.
• Sun-faded paint drops value and cannot be fixed.

Check the extremities first — fingers, hat brims, tool handles, basket edges. That is where damage happens.

Photograph the base, not the front

This is the part most people get wrong. The front of a Hummel tells you which design it is. The base tells you what it is worth.

To get a useful estimate:

1. Turn the figure over and photograph the base in daylight, filling the frame.
2. Make sure both the stamped trademark and the incised mould number are readable.
3. Take a second photo of the front, whole figure, plain background.
4. Photograph any chips or repairs honestly — an estimate based on a hidden flaw helps nobody.

Then upload it to CostCam and you will get an identification and an estimated range in a few seconds. It is free and runs in your phone's browser.

When to get a proper appraisal

Use the photo estimate to find out which bracket you are in. Then:

• Under $100 — the estimate is enough. Sell it or keep it.
• $100 to $500 — check completed sales on eBay for the same mould number and mark before you price it.
• Above $500, or anything you suspect is rare — pay for a specialist appraisal. A Hummel dealer or a general antiques appraiser will know the market far better than any photo tool, including this one.

A useful rule: if being wrong by half would cost more than an appraisal costs, get the appraisal.

Frequently asked questions