Petroliana Part Of Oilman's Collection Up For Auction

by Deidre Woollard (RSS feed)
Sep 7th 2010 at 11:01PM

Ever heard of petroliana? That's the word given to antiques related to gas and oil. This category includes gas pumps, oil cans, gas advertisements and more. The petroliana collection of a Texas oilman is being auctioned off on September 11 by Great Gatsby's. The collection is full of old advertisements, vintage pumps and other items. The oilman focused on brands that are no longer around like Frontier, Polly, Gilmore and Magnolia. The sale features around three dozen gasoline pumps including older "visible" models that show the gasoline in a cylinder before it went into the tank so that the customer would be assured of the amount and quality of the gas before it went into the car. The vintage American gas pump shown above is by Gilbert & Barker Manufacturing Company, Springfield, Mass., Model 176 and has the original blue glass gas cylinder, the Lion Oil Company brand logo, and a Lion brand globe. This type was in use in the 1920s and 1930s and is estimated to sell for $3,000 to $6,000.

The oilman's collection also includes everything from antique western saddles to a vintage stock ticker. And as might befit any Texan oilman, there are plenty of wild animal mounts including a wild boar and a South African black buck antelope. Online bidding is being handled through LiveAuctioneers.com. An article on Live Auctioneers says that the consignor of these pieces had two buildings constructed to contain the entire collection. There are a total of 525 lots.

Tags: antiques, collectibles, gas pumps, petroliana, vintage gas pumps