This is why the 1920s was the Golden Age of car design

RM Sotheby's

Unless your name is Jay Leno, car collectors tend to focus on a particular theme when selecting examples.

Many zero in on a manufacturer, category, country of origin, or, in the case of one lovely collection to be auctioned in Monaco next month, an era.

The sale will take place at an RM Sotheby's auction on May 14 which runs concurrent to the historical Grand Prix of Monaco.

Interestingly, all lots are offered without reserve.

The "Quattroruote" collection is the child Gianni Mazzocchi, co-founder of the widely-read Italian motoring magazine of the same name, Autoevolution reported.

Along with a good variety of other vehicles, like a World War II-era Jeep, an 1879 Singer racing bicycle, and (rather oddly) a 1978 Mercedes station wagon, the collection boasts an impressive selection of vehicles from the 1920s, perhaps the most influential era of automotive development and design.

Some highlights include a head-turning Bugatti Type 57 Cabriolet with coachwork by Gangloff of Colmar, once the famous French automaker's showpiece and a car sure to capture a sale figure with many, many zeroes.

A 1914 Benz 8/20 Tourer. It is of the "brass era."

The brake and throttle controls are handles outside the vehicle. It took a while to settle on a standardized layout for controls, not to be set until the introduction of the ...

... Austin 7, a highly-successful and influential British design which was the first mass-produced vehicle to feature the same control layout (pedals on the floor ordered clutch, brake, and gas) still used in cars today.