NEW HAMBURG, Ontario – A 1950s double-sided Oldsmobile dealer sign, a fully restored 1942 Wurlitzer Art Deco-inspired “Victory” jukebox and an early 20th century Burry-patented stock ticker machine are just a few top lots in Miller & Miller Auctions Ltd.’s next “Mantiques” auction planned for Sept 14. Bid absentee or live online through LiveAuctioneers.
It will be Miller & Miller’s second such auction. The first one, held nearly a year ago to the day, on Sept. 15, 2018, was a rousing success, as men, and the women who love them, turned out in full force, in-person and online. It was a one-stop shop for folks looking to equip their man caves in style and fashion. The top lot was a 1950 Plymouth woody station wagon (CA$35,400).
This year’s auction will be more of the same. The headliner is the lifetime collection of the late Ivan Hamilton. “Mr. Hamilton’s collection forms the soul of this auction,” said Ethan Miller of Miller & Miller Auctions Ltd. “Ivan selectively bought, but he never sold.”
In all, just under 600 lots of manly memorabilia will come up for bid. Categories will include advertising, signs, automobilia, petroliana (including gas pumps, air meters and ephemera), coin-ops, militaria, railroad collectibles, aviation and sports memorabilia.
“We have two fabulous Oldsmobile dealer signs, one never removed from the original factory-stamped crate (above), and an untouched 5-foot Red Indian porcelain dealer sign that will tantalize serious collectors,” said Miller. He added, “There’s cool stuff like a rare patented stock ticker that could well have recorded the 1929 stock market crash.”
The 5-foot-diameter Oldsmobile sign is from the auto maker’s golden age – the 1950s. It’s a seven-color, double-sided dealer sign that’s new old stock – retained in its original wooden shipping crate, stamped by its Detroit maker, Walker & Company, with the retainer ring in place. The “ringed globe” emblem on the sign symbolized the brand’s universal appeal. It should bring CA$7,500-$9,000 (CA$1=US$0.75).
Carrying an identical estimate is the Canadian, late 1930s-era Red Indian dealer sign (below), 5 feet in diameter and among the most sought-after in Canadian gas and oil advertising. It’s signed lower center, “The F. Vilas Co. Limited, Cowansville, P.Q.” The sign is in excellent condition, with no restoration, and retains a virgin luster. The only flaws are some faint oxidation and a minor chip.
The Wurlitzer “Victory” jukebox from World War II has been professionally restored and serviced. War effort metal restrictions forced Wurlitzer designers to get creative with this 65½- inch-tall Art Deco masterpiece. It’s one of Wurlitzer’s most recognizable models, with carved pedestals, burled veneers and carved feathers forming a “V” on the grille (est. CA$4,000-$6,000).
The rare, early 1900s Canadian National Telegraphs stock ticker was invented by John Burry and made by the Stock Quotation Telegraph Company (N.Y.). The mounting plate reads “Property of Western Union Telegraph Company Teletype, Manufactured by Teletype Corporation, Chicago USA.” The machine, with correct base and glass dome, carries an estimate of CA$3,500-$5,000.
Vehicles will roll out onto the auction floor, led by a silver 1961 Studebaker Lark compact sedan, an untouched original with just 8,200 miles and featuring a 259ci, 180hp V-8 engine, automatic transmission and dual exhaust (est. CA$9,000-$12,000). Also up for bid will be a Japanese-made 1975 Yamaha DT175 Enduro motorcycle showing 4,542 original miles, a repainted gas tank with new decals, the original chrome and newer tires (es. CA$2,500-$3,500).
A Canadian circa 1890s Tuckett & Billing (Hamilton, Ontario) framed lithograph for T&B Tobacco, one of only two examples known, featuring the “two boys” extolling the virtues of smoking the T&B brand, should fetch CA$5,000-$7,000. A Canadian Pacific #3691 locomotive number plate (built in 1912, scrapped in 1960), cast iron with applied brass numerals and fitted with two new nuts for mounting purposes, is estimated at CA$2,000-$3,000.
Cash registers are a must-have for any serious man cave, and this auction features four that are rarely seen. Two of these include a National Model 3 inlaid wood register with a striking cobalt cut-to-clear glass topper, originally shipped to J.A. Banfield of Toronto, Ontario (est. CA$3,500-$4,500); and a National Model 1 “wide base” register, made around 1900 and incised with a Canadian merchant’s mark (“Wm. Potter”), with a rare accessory clock (est. CA$2,500-$3,000).
Two very different lots have identical estimates of CA$2,500-$3,000. The first is a 1958 Gibson J-50 natural acoustic guitar, made in America, with a spruce top, mahogany backs and sides, original adjustable bridge saddle and original fitted case. The second is a monumental two-sided Canadian Bowl-O-Drome neon sign from the 1940s made of painted steel and measuring 9 inches by 54 inches by 12 inches. It reportedly came out of an establishment near Peterborough.
Petroliana and automobilia will be highlighted by a 1940s American-made lighted pedestal air meter, complete and functioning with a new air hose and marked, “ECO Tireflator, John Wood Co., Bennett Pump Div., Muskegon, Michigan” (est. CA$3,000-$3,500); and a Canadian 1930s Thayer’s Blue Ribbon (London, Ontario) lithographed tin motor oil quart can, both scarce and visually arresting, with just a few subtle impressions and a faint scratch (est. CA$2,500-$3,000).
For details contact Miller & Miller Auctions at 519- 573-3710 or 519-716-5606 or info@millerandmillerauctions.com.
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