Advertising signs, tins and packaging, breweriana, store displays, promotional items, paper advertising and company memorabilia.
Advertising was made to be seen, not kept: enamel signs on shop walls, tins on kitchen shelves, beer
mats on pub tables. What survives tells the story of brands, shops and everyday life - and the best
pieces, from porcelain signs to store displays, are small works of commercial art.
Getting Started
Signs: porcelain enamel, tin, neon and light-up signs, thermometers
and clocks.
Company memorabilia: anniversary pieces, employee badges, service
awards and salesman’s samples.
Collect a brand, a product (coffee, tobacco, motor oil, beer), a region or a type of piece. Petroliana
and automobilia - everything from petrol stations and garages - is a field of its own.
What to Record
Brand and company: the brand advertised, the company behind it and its town.
Maker: many signs and tins name their maker at the edge or on the back, often with a date code.
Material and size: porcelain enamel or tin, single- or double-sided, and the measurements.
Date: from the maker’s mark, the address or the logo version the piece shows.
Originality: original, restored, a later reissue by the company, a reproduction or a fantasy
piece that never existed as an original.
Condition and Grading
Auction houses grade advertising on the C scale from C10 (mint) to C1 (junk); half grades like C8.5
are common. Note chips (especially at the mounting holes of enamel signs), scratches, dents, rust,
fading and touch-ups. Restoration lowers the value of most pieces, and it should always be recorded.
Care and Storage
Keep signs and tins dry and away from strong sunlight, which fades colours. Clean gently with a
damp cloth only - abrasives and polish remove the printing. Store paper advertising like other paper:
flat, in acid-free sleeves.
Mistakes to Avoid
Taking a reproduction for an original: popular brands like Coca-Cola, Shell and Harley-Davidson are
widely reproduced, often with artificial wear.
Repainting or “touching up” a sign without recording it.
Throwing away the contents or the original wrapper of packaging, which add to its value.
The 25 fields worth recording for advertising & breweriana, grouped as in the
ordicio app.
Identification
Brand advertised Text
Brand or product the piece advertises, e.g. Coca-Cola, Michelin, Guinness, Persil.
Company Text
Company behind the brand or the piece, with its town if known, e.g. Brauerei Beck & Co., Bremen.
Maker Text
Person, workshop or firm that made the object; write 'attributed to' or 'workshop of' when not certain.
Date / period Text
When the object was made, as precise as known, e.g. 1876, c. 1890, 1920s, 2nd century AD.
Country Text
Country of origin or issue, by its usual English name (historic states as named at the time, e.g. Kingdom of Bavaria).
Reference link Link
Web page about this object or its reference entry (catalogue, database, sale).
Physical
Height (cm) Number
Height, measured upright as the object is meant to stand or hang.
Width (cm) Number
Width, measured from the front.
Depth (cm) Number
Depth, measured from front to back.
Materials Text
Materials the object is made of, main material first.
Condition
Grade (C scale) Choice
Condition on the 10-point C scale of advertising auctions; note half grades such as C8.5 in the condition notes.
C10 Mint
C9 Near mint
C8 Excellent
C7 Fine
C6 Very good
C5 Good
C4 Fair
C3 Poor
C2 Very poor
C1 Junk
Originality Choice
Whether the piece is original to its time; reproductions and fantasy pieces are common for popular brands.
Original
Original, restored
Later reissue by the company
Reproduction
Fantasy piece (no original exists)
Unknown
Condition notes Text
Faults, wear and damage in detail.
Restoration & repairs Text
Restorations, repairs, replaced parts and cleaning, with who did them and when if known.
Acquisition
How and when the object came into the collection.
Acquisition date Date
Date the object came into the collection.
Acquisition method Choice, or your own
How the object came into the collection.
Purchase
Auction
Gift
Inheritance
Exchange / trade
Self-collected / found
Commission
Acquired from Text
Seller, auction house (with sale and lot number), donor or place where it was found.
Purchase price Amount
Price paid including fees and premiums.
Provenance Text
Earlier owners and the object's history, oldest first, with sources (labels, invoices, sale catalogues).
Value
Estimated and insured value.
Estimated value Amount
Current market value as estimated.
Valuation date Date
Date of the current value estimate.
Valuation basis Choice
What the estimated value is based on.
Own estimate
Recent sales / auction results
Dealer offer
Catalogue value
Professional appraisal
Insurance valuation
Insured value Amount
Sum the object is insured for.
Collection record
Your own inventory data.
Inventory number Text
Your own number or label for the object, e.g. C-0042, as written on its label or album page.
Storage location Text
Where the object is kept, e.g. room, cabinet, drawer, album and page, box.
Standards and References
The data sheets follow the standards collectors, dealers and museums use:
Condition scale C1 to C10 as used by advertising and toy auction houses
Breweriana collecting categories of the American Breweriana Association and the Brewery Collectibles Club of America
Petroliana and automobilia trade terms (porcelain and tin signs, globes, oil cans)
The Ephemera Society categories for paper advertising (trade cards, labels, calendars)
Updated October 24, 2026
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