The top lot of the auction, and the star of the grouping of bronzes by Stanley Wanlass, was this expressive and dynamic example titled “Passing Of The Horse,” circa 1983, which attained $34,800 ($12/24,000).
Review by Andrea Valluzzo
VINELAND, N.J. — The final auction of the collections of lifelong Allentown, Penn., collector David Bausch, a retired hospital administrator, was conducted at Bertoia Auctions on August 28, headlining its Automotive Sale that drew bidders from around the world and realized $547,000.
“We were very pleased. There were items in his collection that you just don’t see,” Jeanne Bertoia said of the results, noting they had had five or six other auctions offering Bausch’s collections, but this was the final part. Part one of his automotive collections was sold in September 2025. “He collected his entire life; he bought and collected anything that had wheels,” she added. “It was such a pure collection as he had never sold anything and he amassed such a quantity of quality pieces through the years.”
Interviewed by Antiques and The Arts Weekly back in 2015, Bausch showed off his vast collection of toys ranging from autos to horse-drawn vehicles. As he admitted a penchant for Franklins, he noted he then drove one frequently while also owning several others, so it’s not surprising that the Franklin brand was well represented in this auction. Bausch’s 1925 Franklin Series 11A sedan, which he rode in several Allentown parades, drove off to a new buyer at $13,200, just over its $6/12,000 estimate. This car was named a 1992 Classic Car Club of America award winner and was handsome in dark green paint with black fenders and evinces the innovative engineering that H.H. Franklin Manufacturing was known for.
This 1925 Franklin series 11A sedan was a 1992 Classic Car Club of America Original Car Award Winner. In dark green with black fenders, it even tempted the auctioneer. The winning bidder took it home just over its high estimate for $13,200 ($6/12,000).
The Franklin 11A even tempted auctioneer Michael Bertoia, who said after the sale he would have loved to buy it for the fun of driving it around. “This car looks so cool and is 100 years old, and I was told he actually bought that car before he even had a driver’s license so that shows how early he started this pursuit and passion for collecting automobile-related items.”
Now in his 90s, Bausch had filled his home with a variety of items from small “gentleman’s” desktop items like inkwells, tobacco jars and cigar humidors, to toys and oversized French advertising posters. Pocket watches engraved on the cases with automotive scenes also made their way into his collection as did several early coin purses back when cars were still a novelty. One suspects the circa 1910-20s coin purses were for making change or tipping gas station attendants or for paying tolls in the pre-EZ Pass era.
Like petroliana, automobile-related collectibles is a robust market and savvy collectors are aways eager for rare and desirable material. “When you consider the price of an automobile of that era…you can imagine how short of a supply of automobile ephemera and merchandise was created,” Bertoia said. “And then fast forward 100 years later, how much of it actually survived.”
This large, single-sided Franklin Motor Cars service station porcelain sign, circa 1920s, realized $10,200 ($4/6,000).
The overall top lot came out of a grouping of five bronzes by contemporary sculptor Stanley Wanlass, all with automotive themes. The star lot was a dynamic sculpture with a fine patina titled “Passing Of The Horse,” which attained a robust price of $34,800. The circa 1983 work from an edition of 30 exemplified a watershed moment in the Industrial Revolution as cars overtook horses as the preferred mode for transportation. In this sculpture, an early touring car driven by a figure wearing goggles while a man and woman relaxed in the back seat passed a man riding a horse for all he’s worth but was not fast enough for the modern marvel.
Prices quoted include the buyer’s premium as reported by the auction house. Bertoia’s next auction will be Cast Iron, featuring the Robert Booth, Jr Collection, on September 25. For information, www.bertoiaauctions.com or 856-692-1881.
