Auction Alert: Petroliana – Enamel signs, petrol pump globes, oil cans and early advertising

Petroliana is a new word on us. We’ve heard of automobilia in the past; however, judging by the names, ‘petroliana’ refers to things found in a gas/petrol station or garage and ‘automobilia’ is the term for anything car/van/motorbike/automobile-related.

Petroliana – Enamel signs, petrol pump globes, oil cans and early advertising takes place on 29^th June 2024, from 9:30am. The sale is being run by Richard Edmonds Auctions who are based in Chippenham, Wiltshire. There are 514 lots, and we’ve chosen to highlight some of the items in the sale that you don’t have to be a ‘petrol head’ to appreciate… We certainly aren’t! They’re all things that would look great in any home, garden, greenhouse, man cave, she shed etc.

There’s a buyer’s premium of 16.67% (exc. VAT) and a further online commission of 3% (exc. VAT) on top, so bear that in mind before you place any bids.

In addition to in the room bidding, bids can be left with us, live bidding over the telephone available as well as through the-saleroom.com

Lot 46: A Michelin Mr. Bibendum bakelite ashtray

Estimate: £200-£300

Lot 110: A 1950s Michelin Bibendum ‘Baby Girl’ moneybox

5 1/4″ tall.
Estimate: £180-£200

Lot 114: A Shell Motor Oil pint jug

Estimate: £150-£200

Lot 120: A Pratt’s Perfection Spirit framed and glazed advertising mirror

Depicting a Pratt’s Perfection Spirit two-gallon can, 20 1/4 x 26 1/4″.
Estimate: £300-£400

Lot 145: A set of Peek traffic lights

Lights on rotation between the three colours, 37″ tall x 13 1/2″ wide x 8″ deep, shades detachable.
Estimate: £100-£200

Lot 173: Eight oil pourers

Inc. Shell X-100 pint, Smiths Bluecol, Fina, Esso, Shell anti-freeze etc.
Estimate: £50-£80

Lot 187: A selection of play-worn models of petrol pumps etc, some stamped Dinky

Estimate: £15-£25

Lot 200: A Michelin First Aid (tyre repair) tin cabinet/toolbox

Unusually still with inside partitions and some original contents, 16 x 8 1/4 x 4 1/4″ closed, 16 x 16″ opened.
Estimate: £300-£500

Lot 231: A Dunlop Fan Belts wall-mounted rack

Estimate: £40-£60

Lot 256: A Motorcraft acrylic wall clock

With illustrations advertising the brand’s products, 15 x 15 3/4″.
Estimate: £150-£200

Lot 307: A Shell plastic watering can

Estimate: £150-£200

Lot 372: A National Benzole four-sided hanging light with glass sides

One frosted glass side, another Night Service with NB logo, another with a five-digit phone number and logo and the other a second Night Service with NB logo (very heavy).
Estimate: £300-£500

Lot 385: A Castrol Anti-freeze garage wall thermometer

8 1/4 x 22 1/2″.
Estimate: £80-£120

Vintage advertising wall art

We’ve got some fabulous vintage advertising wall art heading to our web shop this week – or available to buy as of now if you want to get in touch. We’ll start off with two pieces of film memorabilia – both from the Sci-Fi genre. First, an original film poster for Westworld dating from the 1970s. For fans of the current HBO series, this is where it all started! It’s a classic film with interesting concepts and great acting performances, most notably from Yul Brynner as the menacing robotic cowboy.

And then we have a framed original lobby card from the film Rollerball. Again dating from the 1970s, this film stars James Caan and revolves around the sport of Rollerball which descends & degrades into a violent, almost gladiatorial form… with an overarching theme of the struggle between corporate-run society and the freedom of the individual. They’re both great looking items – and we particularly love the fonts.

And then there are these two vintage product advertising signs. First, a French enamel sign for Bélébon. We really like the bottle & glass design – that glass is filled up just the way we like it! And the bold colour combination of red, yellow and black is a real winner too.

Secondly, what we presume is a dry cleaner’s sign. It puts potential customers’ minds at ease, letting them know that “Our work will satisfy you”. We don’t think they could be accused of hyperbole or overdoing the claims. Again, we like the colours and graphic design of this piece.

PRICES:

Framed original vintage Westworld poster £150
Rollerball framed original vintage lobby card £75
Bélébon wine vintage enamel sign £50
Dry cleaner’s vintage metal sign £50

Designer Desire: Donald Brun

Donald Brun (1909-1999) was one of the most influential Swiss graphic designers and poster artists of his time. His work is humorous, fun and eye-catching. He used a palette of bright colours, often depicting stylised animals and inanimate objects taking on human traits.

His images were condensed down to their elemental message; simple, yet thoughtfully and intelligently designed. Take, for example, the smoking cockerel in his Gauloises poster (pictured above, 2^nd row, on the right); not only is the bird’s body an angled packet of the cigarettes, his comb is a lick of fire and his legs are composed of matchsticks.

He was commissioned by many big companies such as Swissair, Perrier, Persil and Bata. He created the Pavilion for Chemistry at the Brussels World’s Fair in 1958; the event famous for bringing us the Atomium. Unfortunately, I can’t find any images of the building.

He has a huge back catalogue and many of his designs, especially his advertising posters, are readily available. Original vintage examples and new prints can be found on Amazon, art.co.uk, Artnet and eBay.

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Image credits:
Invaluable

Husman’s finds a home!

We bought this extra large Husman’s potato chips tin at Thursday’s flea market. It’s made the long journey from Cincinnati, Ohio to Todmorden, West Yorkshire!

The fabulous colours caught our eye from a long way off.

As we got closer, we realised that it was a vintage tin with fabulous lettering and chirpy chip boy mascot! We reckon that it dates from the late 1960s era.

We love these branded wooden crates and tins. They’re very attractive and make for great up-cycled storage. And they also work really well as bedside or side tables.

It’s perfect sitting alongside a favourite chair – a place for books, reading glasses, a vase of flowers, glass of wine or hot cuppa. We’ve become very fond of it in a short space of time. We don’t know how it got to our little Pennine town from Cincinatti, but we’re glad it did!

H is for Home Harbinger

Tag: Advertising