Klaus Werner's 250F (s/n 2531) greeted the visitors at the entrance. Behind it, a Ferrari 212 Touring, s/n 0112E. Click here for larger image.

The Albanesi bodied Aprilia, built before WWII and raced afterward. Click here for larger image.

Parked mere feet from the main entrance, was a cluster of astounding cars on the stand of Klaus Werner, including a fabulously well-restored Maserati 250F (chassis 2531), showing only a few battle scars from its most recent outing, and blocking the path to a Pininfarina-bodied Ferrari 166. Walking further into this first hall, one was immediately greeted by the Carozzeria Albanesi-bodied 1938 Lancia Aprilia Barchetta Spider. Parked during the Second World War, this pretty car finally hit the tracks of Europe a decade after its construction, and competed in the 1947 and 1948 Mille Miglias.

The Lukas Hueni AG stand lived up to its reputation of displaying only the finest vehicles. Front and center was the ex-Robert Jenny Maserati 300S Sports Racer, chassis 3056. One of 27 built with essentially 250F mechanicals, this example was delivered new on 20 June 1955, and raced by Joakim Bonner in 1956, passing to Argentina and back to America in the subsequent decades, before returning to Europe on the heels of a total restoration in 1989. Lurking immediately behind this beast sat a freshly restored Ferrari 250 Le Mans racer, followed by an exceptionally original Ferrari Daytona Coupe.

Presented by the Alfa Historic Challenge, this blue Alfa GTV was in full race trim. Click here for larger image.

A pre-war Alfa 1900? One of the very rare 6C 1900s, museum bound for years. S/n 121315287. Click here for larger image.

The Alfa Romeo Historic Challenge displayed for the first time, presenting three cars in full race trim, including a pretty 1968 Sprint Bertone. On the neighboring Lancia Club Deutschland stand sat an even more imposing 1967 Lancia Fulvia 2C, completely gutted and transformed into a racing machine, sporting bright yellow paint, but retaining its tricky original column shift. Directly opposite, the Alfa Romeo Club Deutschland exhibit unfolded with one of Vittorio Jano's masterpieces, a 6th series 6C 1900 GT (Chassis 121315287), one of 197 constructed in both 1500 and 1900 variants. Delivered new in London, this timewarp example was originally the property of a Mr. Mac Leod, before passing to his son in 1948. Little-used and remaining parked in the family stable until the early 1970s, the car was acquired by a regional Swiss museum, before passing to a French museum by the end of the decade. Thus until its acquisition in 2001 by a German collector, this machine had hardly turned a wheel under its own power since the late 1940s, but was recently subjected to a minor cosmetic restoration.

This being somewhat of banner year for Maserati year at Essen, the Maserati Club Deutschland presented a striking 450S (chassis 4502). Delivered new in 1956 to the American Tony Parravno, this car drifted to Mexico, back to the US, and then through the UK, to its current nesting spot in Germany. One of 11 constructed and perhaps 10 surviving, this machine joins chassis 4506 in Germany, with (2) other examples lingering in Europe, and the rest surviving in America. Displayed on a stand beside the car was a spare 450S racing engine, property of the same owner.

Jano's classic Alfa 6C engine in 1900 cc form. Click here for larger image.

Next to a Maserati 450S, was an extra engine. Nothing like having ready spares. Click here for larger image.

Hamburg-based E Thieson AG displayed a newly-restored Maserati 3500 GT Vignale Spider, one of the last of 242 constructed, and a resonating presence in Italian racing red. On the other side of this stand in a somewhat darker shade of the same, sat a bumperless Alfa Romeo 1900C Super Sprint, body by Touring, and yours for only 70,500 Euros. But by far the finest display of Italian automobiles on a single stand was offered by the newly-created Montverdi, a dealer offering fine cars to investors on the strength of their historical importance, not necessarily their price tag. The unabashed purity of their 1959 Lancia Flaminia Sport, the early closed headlight version, reminded visitors why it is perhaps Zagato's masterpiece. In its early 2.5 liter version, this car may lack the extra punch of the later 2.8 liter examples, but what it misses in horsepower it makes up for with perfect presentation. Unfortunately, they are very seldom seen, and photographs often fail to do them justice.

On the same stand, one's eyes could feast upon a perfectly restored Ferrari 250 GT Boano "low roof" Aluminum Coupe (chassis 0547 GT), carrying that glorious 240hp V-12, propelling it to 60km in only 6 seconds. Produced for display at the 1956 Paris Salon d'Automobile, this example passed through Switzerland and Italy before winding up in Montverdi's hands, and has recently benefited from a 20,000 Euro mechanical sorting. Around the corner sat a devilishly handsome Alfa Romeo 6C 2500 Villa d' Este (chassis 915884), Montverdi's most original Italian offering. Having covered less than 20,000km since new, this example seemed completely new, inside and out. No doubt it changed hands by fair's end, as it was always surrounded by a clutch of whispering and gesturing collectors, all of whom were unmistakably planning its liberation.

Lancia's subtle Zagato, the 1959 2.5 Flaminia Sport. Click here for larger image.

Low roof Boano for Ferrari fans, s/n 0547GT. Click here for larger image.

And it went on and on, from the menacingly beautiful pre-war cars on the Louis Vutton stand, sitting on large patches of real grass, to the fine selection of carefully guarded machines in hall of UK-based auction house Coys of Kensington. Their display included a well-crafted Ferrari 250GT recreation, a wonderfully original Fiat-Abarth 750 Double Bubble (one of two for sale at this event), and a lovely open-wheeled Nardi sports racer. In the courtyard of vehicles available from private parties, one could have walked away with a perfectly original Fiat 850 Berlina (perhaps overpriced at nearly 7,000 Euros), or one of three generations of Alfa Romeo Spiders, parked side-by-side, and seemingly always a center of attention.

Was it bigger and better than last year? Certainly, yes. Masterful presentation in the right space and international recognition in collector circles has surely earned Essen the right to bill itself as the best such event in the world. It is well worth a look, at least once.