The event was held the day before the popular Chicagoland Petroliana & Advertising Show.
(PEOTONE, Ill.) – An exceptionally clean Richlube Motor Oil double-sided porcelain sign (“100% Pure Pennsylvania”) soared to $7,425 at the Spring Petroliana & Advertising Auction held Mar. 4 by Matthews Auctions, LLC. The sale was conducted the day before the popular Chicagoland Petroliana & Advertising Show, held each spring and fall in Peotone.
The Richlube sign, consigned by a collector in upstate New York, featured a small race car graphic and was graded 9 out of 10 on the front for overall condition, and 8.9 on the reverse side. The sign boasted super gloss and color, the only flaws being some minor crazing in the center, and small chips in the outer field and around the mounting holes. Otherwise, it was mint.
The sign was the top achiever of the more than 475 lots that changed hands in an auction that attracted over 150 people and had over 400 registered online bidders (who participated through LiveAuctioneers.com and Proxibid.com). About half of the lots sold to the room, while 48 percent went to online bidders, and one percent each sold to telephone and absentee bidders.
“It was a very strong auction, both in terms of participation and prices realized,” said Dan Matthews of Matthews Auctions, LLC, which is based in Nokomis, Ill. “The attendance in person and over the Internet was so great, it helped to boost prices up to nice, healthy levels. Bidding was spirited all day long. It was an even better auction than I hoped it would be.”
The auction was packed with much petroliana and automobilia, to include signs, globes and oil bottles from the Ron Throckmorton collection, a great collection of Coca-Cola and soda-related items (like signs, thermometers and trays), country store items and more. Following are additional highlights from the auction. All prices quoted include a 10 percent buyer’s premium.
The second top lot was a rare United Motors Authorized Service double-sided porcelain die-cut sign (“With Delco-Remy and Klaxon”). Rated 8.9 on both sides and measuring 17 inches by 18 inches, the sign brought $5,225. Also, a hard-to-find Ford Benzol For All Motor Cars Authorized Distributor double-sided porcelain sign, professionally restored, garnered $4,400.
A D-X 3-D identification porcelain sign, rated 9 with great gloss and color and measuring 40 inches by 78 inches, realized $3,300. The superb piece came out of a collection in Kansas. Also, a ‘Standard’ Motor Gasoline Polarine Oil double-sided porcelain sign (for Standard Oil of New Jersey), 30 inches tall and both sides rated 8.5 with fine gloss and color, coasted to $3,190.
A pair of Texaco stained-leaded glass lenses in a metal body, with the distinctive Texaco “star” logo, fetched $3,080. The 14-inch display lens was rated 9, while the reverse lens was rated 7.5. The globe was in need of cleaning. Also, an Oak Motor Oil double-sided porcelain curb sign with base, having tree graphics and standing 20 inches tall, rated 8, went for $2,310.
A Mobo Auto Body Polish (“The Lustre Lasts”) cardboard stand-up (circa 1925-1935), with a graphic of a man polishing an early sedan and measuring 40 inches by 20 inches, rated 8+ with great color, earned $2,640; and a Winchester double-sided tin sign with a Western graphic of a cowboy on horseback holding a 30-30 rifle, 38 inches tall and both sides rated 9, hit $2,200.
Two Trackage “Tank Car to Your Car” 13.5-inch lenses on a wide glass globe body, with rail tank car logo, the display lens rated 7.5 and the reverse lens rated 6.75, demanded $2,475, while a Shell Gasoline porcelain die-cut sign with red background, measuring 12 inches by 12 inches, with good gloss and color and marked “Made in the USA” at the bottom, brought $1,870.
An original Phillips 66 “Tires Batteries” double bubble clock with orange and black logo, 15 inches tall and rated 9, in good working condition, went to a determined bidder for $1,595, and a Coca-Cola “Take Home a Carton of Big Size Six-Pack” single-sided tin sign, with a fish-tail logo, measuring 28 inches by 20 inches, rated 9, marked “Robertson 1958,” rose to $1,045.
Matthews Auctions, LLC, has a full slate of auctions planned for the months ahead. First up is a pair of sales on consecutive days in California. On Saturday, April 16, a Spring 2011 Petroliana & Advertising Absolutes Auction will be held at the facilities of Redlands Antique Auction, at 1547 West Park Avenue in Redland. Two great collections have been consigned.
Then, on Sunday, April 17, Matthews Auctions, LLC will conduct an estate auction in Raymond, Calif., at 17117 Petrolia Court. It will feature Ford tractors, gas pumps, petroliana, signs, farm toys, lunch boxes, antiques and more. It is the estate of Jerry Schlumpberger. He and his wife Sharon started and ran the Body Works By Jerry auto body shop in Raymond, Calif.
On Saturday, June 25, Matthews Auctions, LLC will hold an auction that dovetails into the Check the Oil Show in Dublin, Ohio (at 5100 Upper Metro Place). The auction will feature pertroliana, automobilia and more. Finally, on Friday, Aug. 5, an auction preceding the Iowa Gas Show will be held in Des Moines, Iowa. It is typically Matthews Auctions LLC’s biggest and best show of the year. Featured will be hundreds of quality lots of petroliana and automobilia.
Matthews Auctions, LLC is always accepting quality consignments for future sales (and the firm is currently seeking consignments for the June auction in Ohio and the August auction in Iowa). To consign a single item, an estate or an entire collection, you may call them toll-free at (877) 968-8880, or you can send an e-mail to Dan Matthews, at [email protected].
Mr. Matthews is currently writing a book about petroliana, to be titled The Fine Art of Collecting Petroliana. The book is expected to be completed by June of this year. Watch the Matthews Auctions website for details on how to order.
For more information about Matthews Auctions, LLC, and the calendar of upcoming events, log on to www.MatthewsAuctions.com
