The vibrant red and yellow clam shell logo of Royal Dutch Shell PLC is truly iconic and here we see is displayed on a lovely example of the companies mid-century enamel advertising. 

 

Founded in 1907, Shell is one of the founding fathers of motoring and they started as an amalgamation of two even earlier companies... The Shell Transport and Trading Co. was founded by two brothers in England in 1897 and the Royal Dutch Petroleum Company was founded in 1890 to develop an oil field in North Sumatra. The two companies merged in 1907 - a move instigated by the need to compete globally with Standard Oil. By the end of the 1920s Shell was the world's leading oil company producing 11% of the total crude oil supply. In 1932 Shell merged it's UK marketing operations with those of British Petroleum to create Shell and BP - a company that traded until the brands separated in 1975. 

 

This particular enamel sign is likely to date to 1960 - it's a format and design that ran from the mid-'50s through to the mid-'60s, but the 'P_60' stamp in the lower left of this sign is likely to be a 1960 date marker. Shell's merger with BP is particularly relevant to this sign as it's generally found paired to a BP sign displaying their green and yellow 'shield' logo. This pairing means most Shell signs of this format are 'handed' with the right-hand edge flat i.e. without the rounded corners - a half of a Shell / BP display. This example, with all four corners rounded was always intended to be displayed on it's own and subsequently is a little rarer and generally more desirable. It remains in good, clean condition - there's a little nibbling and some minor corrosion around the outer edges and a few small patches of discolouration across the surface of the sign, most notably in the upper right of the Shell logo... Otherwise the colours remain bright and the surface retains a good gloss. It sits good and flat and can be hung using it's original mounting holes. In my opinion these small signs of wear add to the authenticity and character of the piece.

 

The sign measures 76.5cm high x 71.5cm wide.