If you are stuck for a Christmas gift for a devotee of the automobile there are a host of unusual and wonderful things to buy, but not usually at the mall.
One of my greatest Achilles heels is the vintage automobilia that was created around and about vintage automobiles.
A very good friend of mine is a collector of fine automobiles, but his collection of cars is rather modest compared with his collection of automobilia. While any vintage poster, gas pump or oil bottle may interest him, hood ornaments have become his passion.
He started his collection with hood ornaments like those found on Pierce Arrows, Packards, Chevrolets and even Model A Fords, but his tastes developed as his collection grew. Now I would guess that he has perhaps 2,000 hood ornaments and many are one-off creations, celebratory jeweller's pieces and indeed even custom ornaments made for people like Rudolph Valentino.
Foremost on his collection is an almost complete assembly of crystal Lalique mascots, which are stunning pieces of art. I often kid him about assembling the rest of the car now that he has the first bits but I am willing to bet that he could buy dozens of collectible cars for the value of his mascot collection.
I have a varied collection, which ranges from hundreds of brand-new die-cast models to vintage and new automotive art, advertising posters and trivia of all sorts. Some I collect by intention, some by chance but that the amount is becoming unwieldy often worries me. I have dozens of tubes filled with prints and posters, so many in fact that every now and then I review them and am pleasantly surprised at the value of that entertainment as I unroll wonderful pieces that I have forgotten I have acquired.
I am not alone in this affliction. There are people out there who collect everything from old gas station memorabilia like coupons, stamps and novelty advertising items to complete gas stations themselves.
Bronze statuary, popular in the twenties and thirties, depicting automobiles and automotive situations is another favourite of collectors and these often stunningly beautiful art pieces can range in price from a couple of hundred to many thousands of dollars.
Many collectibles can be quite modest in cost. One of the most satisfying automotive collectibles are the old print ads found in magazines and periodicals right from the dawn of the age of automobiles.
Even the rarest of these rarely exceed $40 or $50 and often one can find an old magazine for $5 that contains $100 or so of automotive adverts. Putting them into a simple frame makes them extraordinarily great gifts.
I have a number of complete magazines from the early 1900s that have wonderful advertisements depicting very early automobiles. As the years progressed the sophistication of the advertisers was honed by the market place.
In the 1930s, incredibly beautiful pieces of art work were commissioned displaying automobiles in all kinds of situations. Not only do these represent the cars, they often give us a great insight into the times.
Some adverts, especially those for luxury cars, are truly amazing. Cadillac ran a series in the early thirties that were actually ornamented with silver foil.
In good condition these adverts are stunning when framed and twinkle like the day that they were produced.
Purchasing automobilia is relatively easy to do now that we have the Internet. Lots of great collectibles can be found on eBay, but there are a couple of other sites where the pickings are even better for those of you who would like to dabble.
The first is an auction and retail site called L'art et l'automobile (http://www.arteauto.com). Lots of trouble to be had there. The auctions are held several times a year and there is usually something that takes the eye.
Another site called MastroNet Auctions of Distinction (http://www.mastronet.com) deals in collectibles of all sorts including sports and U.S. political memorabilia, most from the prewar period. It usually offers lots of really rare and exciting automobilia as well when you dig through and this is the most dangerous auction site I have found to date, at least if you want really important automobilia.
Check these two sites out if you want to find truly unusual Christmas gifts for someone or just want to have some fun window shopping.
David Grainger owns an automotive restoration company
