A petrol pump globe lamp by Hailware advertising Scotch Motor Spirit was not dated in the catalogue but looked pure 1920s or ’30s when the British term for petrol had just about vanished from the language.
It had some nibbling around the foot and some artwork loss, but there were no obvious chips or cracks and the £50-100 estimate tempted, among others, a couple who drove from London to be at the March 22 sale.
They stayed with the bidding but finally lost out to an online rival who took the lamp at £5000. Clearly it is quite a rarity.
Condition being a high priority for collectors, a second similar globe for Scotch Motor Spirit made by Hailwood & Ackeroyd, but cracked, holed, nibbled to the foot and suffering losses to the lettering, made a lot less.
Even so, it went at £600, six times the top estimate.
At that price, it comprehensively outsold any of the 42 lots of Scotch whisky on offer, which were led by a bottle of Glengoyne 1969 vintage reserve single malt at £270.
