Auction of pub's adverts, a sign of the times

UK PUBS are closing at a rate of two a day.

But one man's loss is another man's gain, and furniture and wall decorations from one Wiltshire pub will going under the hammer in the Cotswolds at the end of June.

Quirky vintage tables and decorations are being sold on behalf of the Plough Inn at Wanborough, a real ale pub built in 1730 and – until recently – one of five hostelries in the village.

At Moore Allen & Innocent's next antiques auction in Cirencester on Friday, June 29, collectors will be given the chance to bid for items including two Singer sewing machine tables at £30 to £50 each, a pair of haberdasher's tables with inlaid brass measuring rules at £100 to £200, and two oak corner benches with an estimate of £50 to £80 each.

But the highlights of the collection are a number of authentic enamel advertising signs, the best of which is a circa 1920 BP Motor Spirit sign.

Measuring a whopping 1.8m wide, the sign features the BP logo set inside the union flag.

Although showing signs of wear – with rust patches across the enamel surface – auctioneers are still confident of bids between £150 and £250 for this iconic lot.

Similarly, a 1.6m wide 1920s enamel sign for Halls Distemper 'The Oil-Bound Water Paint' is likely to attract bids of £150 to £250, while a 1920s sign for The Picture Paper, which features a king and a peasant reading the half-pence newspaper under the slogan 'for everybody', is expected to achieve £100 to £150.

Outside of the Plough collection, another enamel sign – for Fry's chocolate – could make the top price of the sale.

The sign features a young boy in a top hat – presumed to be an Eton schoolboy – rummaging through his pockets for change while gazing at a display of Fry's chocolate products in a shop window.

Back in 2016 auctioneers sold another example of the circa 1900s enamel sign for £4,000.

Although blighted by rust, this enamel sign commands an estimate of £1,500 to £2,000.

Like the BP sign, a plethora of blue and white stripes can be found in the ceramics section, where a large collection of crockery from TG Green is expected to achieve between £200 and £300.

TG Green began producing its blue and white striped Cornishware in the 1920s.

Once ubiquitous, it is now highly collectable – there are even examples in the Victoria and Albert museum.

The collection at the auction features nearly 50 individual pieces: a teapot, coffee pot, jugs, jars, sifters, storage pots, and a rare ridged rolling pin – the design of which was abandoned in favour of a smooth roller to produce flat pastry.

And remember those haberdasher's tables from the Plough collection?

The perfect accompaniment is surely an early 20th century oak haberdasher's cabinet.

Measuring 6ft wide by 4ft tall, the cabinet offers 24 drawers over six rows on a plinth base.

A bid of £200 to £300 should secure the lot.

For a full auction catalogue, visit mooreallen.co.uk