Australians are encouraged to check their kitchen cupboards for vintage casserole dishes that can fetch a hefty sum of money on reselling websites. With many pieces selling at thousands of dollars, this could be a great opportunity to earn some extra cash!

During the 70s, CorningWare cookware was extremely popular; however, it eventually lost its appeal due to being considered “daggy” and “outdated.”

In recent years, the brand has grown incredibly popular among collectors and home chefs alike due to its superior glass quality, lasting durability, and sentimental value.

During the 1950s, a type of ceramic was uncovered that proved to be incredibly resilient; it has since been widely used in the production of kitchenware and even military weapons by the US.

eBay has some of the rarest white casserole dishes with a clear lid on the market, and they can be worth up to an astounding $15,000- even if they aren’t necessarily popular!

An eBay search of CorningWare will uncover an extensive inventory, with prices ranging anywhere from a thrifty $20 to the hefty sum of 15K.

A savvy seller informed Seven News that they had pocketed a hefty sum of money by selling their mother’s vintage CorningWare items.

“My mother collected CorningWare and it was very popular back in the day, but it’s been gathering dust in our home for years,” she stated.

“I’ve sold off a few pieces – with my mum’s blessing of course – and have made about $9,000 so far. I have another one listed at the moment, which I’m hoping to get around $2,500 for.”

She confessed that when she was younger, she had no idea the pieces could be worth so much; after all, they seemed “just daggy” to her then.

“Now it’s making us more money than I ever dreamed,” she stated.

Ebay shoppers are paying as much as $15,000 for the brand’s exclusive Spice of Life range, which displays a pattern with vegetables and greenery along with the words ‘L’Echalote La Marjolaine’, meaning ‘Shallots and Marjoram’.

After the Wildflower range and Floral Bouquet, ranges were available over seven and four years respectively, they can now be purchased for up to $10,000.

Despite being the least sought-after series, the popular blue range can still hold a hefty price tag. In fact, an intact casserole dish from this range could fetch you over $1,200!

According to Dean Six, an experienced glass specialist, the current price surge is a product of nostalgia.

“Collecting is often what you remember, which is why this is big now because baby boomers are buying back what they grew up with. Boomers are decorating with these pieces in their homes,” he stated.

“One piece of CorningWare, in a pattern not widely produced, sold on eBay recently for $US7,000 (AUD$9.8k). It was a 1970s product that fizzled.”

The unexpected demand for collectible dishes sparked a heated online debate between Australians, with some even selling CorningWare pieces in an op shop for hundreds of dollars.

“I just found out the other day that most modern CorningWare is just fairly ordinary glass, the original was some super heat-resistant stuff but when Corning was taken over the new owners went for cheap,” one woman wrote on Reddit.

“The original CorningWare material was a by-product of research for the US military, for shielding ballistic missiles on re-entry into earth’s atmosphere. Strong stuff,” another person wrote.

Stanley Donald Stookey, a groundbreaking glass chemist, will be forever remembered for his revolutionary invention of the iconic CorningWare dishes. This occurred in the 1950s when he stumbled upon their super-strong glass during an unexpected experiment – one that changed cookware as we know it!

Before it was crafted into an “indestructible” set of cookware, the material had been employed in guided missiles for the American military. Thanks to its heat-resistant properties and scratch/breakage immunity, this line of kitchenware can endure extreme temperatures without issue.