A collection of 28 "perfect" Lalique glass car mascots has been put on display for the first time ever.

A range of 31 mascots, mounted on the bonnets of classic cars and thought to bring good luck to the driver, were made by French master glassmaker Rene Lalique during the 1920s and 1930s.

The collection - three rare mascots short of a perfect set - are privately owned and have been loaned to a museum as part of a "luxury of motoring display" that features a 1906 Renault built for King Edward VII.

They adorned the bonnets of the most stylish early cars, and are now on display in the National Motor Museum, in Beaulieu, Hants.

The collection of 28 decorations is just missing a perfect condition comet, owl and a fox, worth around £285,000 together, to be complete.

Known for his Art Deco perfume bottles, Lalique was commissioned to make his first car mascot by Andre Citroen, the famous French car manufacturer.

The Motor Museum's new exhibition showcases a selection of the most luxurious cars ever built alongside the special mascots, including a 1909 Sliver Ghost Rolls-Royce sporting its own Charles Skyes "Spirit of Ecstasy" mascot.

The collection of intricate glasswork began with the purchase of a Perche fish mascot, because of the owner's love of angling.

The group of glass figures includes a mix of animals and human forms and is on loan to the museum courtesy of Dawson’s Auctioneers & Valuers at Maidenhead.

A spokesman for the museum said: "Purchasing the fish mascot started the collector's journey to find perfect examples of Rene Lalique’s stunning car mascots, which graced the bonnets of the most stylish automobile marques of the day.

"The final three rare Lalique mascots to complete his collection are missing only until he is able to source perfect examples.

"The collection brings art into everyday life, from the light radiating, delicate veined wings of a dragonfly to the heartiest falcon mascot with its thick, tapered neck."