One of the most remarkable automotive collections to ever go under the hammer in Scotland is attracting major international interest ahead of an Angus auction early next month.
The 900-lot treasure trove is the lifetime collection of Fifer William Cunningham which, among rarities from an era of evocative but long-gone marques, is the only known example in the world of an aluminium-bodied 1930s model expected to be the star of the April 2 sale.
That day hundreds of enthusiasts are expected to flock to the Strathmore Vintage Vehicle Club (SVVC) near Glamis for a sale that is the first major event at the club’s new home on the former village station site.
Mr Cunningham known to all as Freddie was born in Fife and trained as a panel beater, honing his skills on the bodies of Alexander’s Buses before starting a business of his own. His affection for exquisite design in bodywork and engineering is reflected in the eclectic nature of the items SVVC staff have spent months cataloguing.
Although many vehicles require major restoration, their rarity has drawn attention from across the UK as well as Italy, Norway, Austria and France.
SVVC chairman Allan Burt a long-time friend of the Strathmiglo enthusiast, who died early last year said, “In the last 50 years or so there have only been two other major Scottish collections sold. This will be the third because of the rarity of many of the cars here.”
Many of the names in the sale are part of automotive legend Delahaye, Panhard, Hotchkiss, Delage, Lea Francis and Auto Union but Freddie’s penchant for the unusual is what has led to the international focus on rural Angus.
“He also had a passion for left-hand-drive cars and that made them unusual in this country at the time,” Mr Burt said, “but he didn’t think anything of that if he liked the vehicle.”
The little-known British Salmson marque is represented in a good-order 1935 example estimated at £9000-16,000 and another sleek rarity is a 1936 Hotchkiss Grand Sport Roadster which it is hoped will make upwards of £14,000. A 1939 McEvoy Steyr aluminium drophead coupe the only one in existence is the main attraction and club officials are pretty sure a modest reserve of £16,000 will be well below what the hammer falls at.
“There are also three Vale Special sports in the sale,” Mr Burt added. “They were built in 1933-35 and used mainly Triumph components but only around 45 were ever made so to have three is remarkable.
The name of another famous Fifer also resonates through the collection in the form of a 1953 Jowett Jupiter drophead coupe once owned by legendary accordionist Jimmy Shand.
“It has been more than a year since Freddie’s death and it’s been a major undertaking to get all the cars and everything else over here,” Mr Burt said. We have been cataloguing the sale since Christmas and if we had not had the room that we’ve created here we would not have been able to hold the sale.
“It is going to be one of the major sales in Scotland in the last 50 years.”