Junk store find brings $100,000

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Alabama couple Robert and Janice Morris made a hefty profit recently when they sold a clay jug they bought for $12 44-years ago from a junk store, for $100,000.

The Morrises like to decorate their rural home with unique items and Robert told WBRC Fox 6, ?We would always look for something out of the ordinary.? 44-years ago in DeLoach?s junk store in Fayetteville, Mr. Morris found a piece that fit the bill perfectly. Janice recalled, ?He picked that jug up and I said, ?Why are you gettin? that??? Robert simply replied, ?Because I like it.?

They took the large 5-gallon jug home for just $12 and kept it the corner of the den. The jug was not treated delicately and according to The Daily Home, was dropped countless times over the years. ?We kicked it around for years. I kept change in it. The kids played with it,? said Robert. ?At first they were afraid of it so we started dressing him up,? said Janice. The pottery depicted a man from head to waist and the family would replace the everyday straw hat they placed on him around holidays, and swap it for themed attire.

The artist?s initials, 'J.L.' are stamped on the lapel of the figure.

When they realized the jug?s history, Robert?s granddaughter returned the vessel to her grandfather. The Morrises then called appraisers to assess its worth. ?They were saying it was valuable. They said it was very valuable. Very rare,? said Robert.

 They received offers to help sell the jug, but advised that selling it to the Birmingham Museum of Art (who bid on the last Lehman jug up for sale) would be best. The museum offered Robert $100,000 for the jug and the sale was made.

Gail Andrews, the museum director, told The Daily Home that John Lehman ?is considered the most important historic potter in Alabama.?

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