AMAN LOADED w.th MISCHIEF, or MATRIMONY. THE HISTORY OF SIGNBOARDS From the Earliest Times to the Present Day BY JACOB LARWOOD AND JOHN CAMDEN HOTTEN " Ue would name you all the signs as he went along " " Oppida dum peragras peragranda poemata spectea " Cock and Bottle TWELFTH IMPRESSION WITH ONE HUNDRED ILLUSTRATIONS BY J. LARWOOD LONDON CHATTO tf WINDUS 1908 To Thomas Wright, Esq., M.A., F.S.A., the Accomplished Interpreter of English Pop^^lar Antiquities^ this 3EittU Uclume is UetucaUfc by THE AUTHORS. 2038562 PKEFACE. THE field of history is a wide one, and when the beaten tracks have been well traversed, there will yet remain some of the lesser paths to explore. The following attempt at a " History of Signboards " may be deemed the result of an exploration in one of these by-ways. Although from the days of Addison's Spectator down to the present time many short articles have been written upon house-signs, nothing like a general inquiry into the subject has, as yet, been published in this country. The extraordinary number of examples and the numerous absurd combinations afforded such a mass of entangled material as doubtless deterred writers from proceeding beyond an occasional article in a maga- zine, or a chapter in a book, when only the more famous signs would be cited as instances of popular humour or local renown. How best to classify and treat the thousands of single and double signs was the chief difficulty in compiling the present work. That it will in every respect satisfy the reader is more than is expected indeed much more than could be hoped for under the best of circumstances. In these modern days, the signboard is a very unimportant object : it was not always so. At a time when but few persons could read and write, house-signs were indispensable in city life. As education spread they were less needed ; and when in the last century, the system of numbering houses was introduced, and every thoroughfare had its name painted at the begin- ning and end, they were no longer a positive necessity their original value was gone, and they lingered on, not by reason of their usefulness, but as instances of the decorative humour c our ancestors, or as advertisements of established reputation and busine,~K success. For the names of many of our streets we are indebted to the sign of the old inn or public-house, which frequently was the first building in the street commonly enough suggest- ing its erection, or at least a few houses by way of commencement. The huge " London Directory " contains the names of hundreds of streets in the metropolis which derived their titles from taverns or public-houses in the immediate neighbourhood. As material for the etymology of the names of persons and places, the various old signs may be studied with advantage. In many other ways the historic importance of house-signs could be shown. Something like a classification of our subject was found absolutely neci'* VI PREFACE. sary at the outset, although from the indefinite nature of many signs the divisions " Historic," " Heraldic," " Animal," &c. under which the various examples have been arranged must be regarded as purely arbitrary, for in many instances it would be impossible to say whether such and such a sign should be included under the one head or under the other. The explanations offered as to origin and meaning are based rather upon con- jecture and speculation than upon fact as only in very rare instances reliable data could be produced to bear them out. Compound signs but increase the difficulty of explanation : if the road was uncertain before, almost all traces of a pathway are destroyed here. When, therefore, a solu- tion is offered, it must be considered only as a suggestion of the possible meaning. As a rule, and unless the symbols be very obvious, the reader would do well to consider the majority of compound signs as quarterings or combinations of others, without any hidden signification. A double signboard has its parallel in commerce, where for a common advantage, two merchants will unite their interests under a double name ; but as in the one case so in the other, no rule besides the immediate interests of those concerned can be laid down for such combinations. A great many signs, both single and compound, have been omitted. To have included all, together with such particulars of their history as could be obtained, would have required at least half-a-dozen folio volumes. However, but few signs of any importance are known to have been omitted, and care has been taken to give fair samples of the numerous varieties of the compound sign. As the work progressed a large quantity of material accumulated for which no space could be found, such as " A proposal to the House of Commons for raising above half a million of money per annum, with a great ease to the subject, by a TAX upon SIGNS, London, 1695," a very curious tract ; a political jcu-cT esprit from the Harleian MSS., (5953,) en- titled " The Civill Warres of the Citie," a lengthy document prepared for a journal in the reign of William of Orange by one " E. I.," and giving the names and whereabouts of the principal London signs at that time. Acts of Parliament for the removal or limitation of signs ; and various religious pamphlets upon the subject, such as " Helps for Spiritual Medi- tation, earnestly Recommended to the Perusal of all those who desire to have their Hearts much with God," a chap-book of the time of Wesley and Whitfield, in which the existing " Signs of London are Spiritualized, with an Intent, that when a person walks along the Street, instead of hav- ing their Mind fill'd with Vanity, and their Thoughts amus'd with the trifling Things that continually present themselves, they may be able to Think of something Profitable." Anecdotes and historical facts have been introduced with a double view ; first, as authentic proofs of the existence and age of the sign ; secondly, in the hope that they may afford variety and entertainment. They will call up many a picture of the olden time ; many a trait of bygone manners and customs old shops and residents, old modes of transacting business, in short, much that is now extinct and obsolete. There is a peculiar pleasure in pondering over these old houses, and picturing them to ourselves as again inhabited by the busy tenants of former years ; in meeting the great names of history in the hours of relaxation, in calling up the scenes which must have been often witnessed in the haunt of the pleasure-seeker, the tavern with its noisy company, the coffee-house with its politicians and PREFACE. vii smart beaux ; and, on the other hand, the quiet, unpretending shop of the ancient bookseller filled with the monuments of departed minds. Such scraps of history may help to picture this old London as it appeared dur- ing the last three centuries. For the contemplative mind there is some charm even in getting at the names and occupations of the former inmates of the houses now only remembered by their signs ; in tracing, by means of these house decorations, their modes of thought or their ideas of humour, and in rescuing from oblivion a few little anecdotes and minor facts of history connected with the house before which those signs swung in the air. It is a pity that such a task as the following was not undertaken many years ago ; it would have been much better accomplished then than now. London is so rapidly changing its aspect, that ten years hence many of the particulars here gathered could no longer be collected. Already, dur- ing the printing of this work, three old houses famous for their signs have been doomed to destruction the Mitre in Fleet Street, the Tabard in Southwark, (where Chaucer's pilgrims lay,) and Don Saltero's house in Cheyne Walk, Chelsea. The best existing specimens of old signboards may be seen in our cathedral towns. Antiquaries cling to these places, and the inhabitants themselves are generally animated by a strong conservative feel- ing. In London an entire street might be removed with far less of public discussion than would attend the taking down of an old decayed sign in one of these provincial cities. Does the reader remember an article in Punch, about two years ago, entitled " Asses in Canterbury ?" It was in ridicule of the Canterbury Commissioners of Pavement, who had held grave delibera- tions on the well-known sign of Sir John Falstaff, hanging from the front of the hotel of that name, a house which has been open for public enter- tainment these three hundred years. The knight with sword and buckler (from " Henry the Fourth,") was suspended from some ornamental iron- work, far above the pavement, in the open thoroughfare leading to the famous Westgate, and formed one of the most noticeable objects in this part of Canterbury. In 1787, when the general order was issued for the removal of all the signs in the city many of them obstructed the thor- oughfares this was looked upon with so much veneration that it waa allowed to remain until 1863, when for no apparent reason it was sen- tenced to destruction. However, it was only with the greatest difficulty that men could be found to pull it down, and then several cans of beer had first to be distributed amongst them as an incentive to action in so great veneration was the old sign held even by the lower orders of the place. Eight pounds were paid for this destruction, which, for fear of a riot, was effected at three in the morning, "amid the groans and hisses of the assembled multitude," says a local paper. Previous to the demolition the greatest excitement had existed in the place ; the newspapers were filled with articles; a petition with 400 signatures including an M.P., the pre- bends, minor canons, and clergy of the cathedral prayed the local "com- missioners " that the sign might be spared ; and the whole community was in an uproar. No sooner was the old portrait of Sir John removed than another was put up ; but this representing the knight as seated, and with a can of ale by his side, however much it may suit the modern publican's notion of military ardour, does not please the owner of the property, and a foe-simile of the time-honoured original is in course of preparation. viii PREFACE. Concerning the internal arrangement of the following work, a few ex- planations seem necessary. Where a street is mentioned without the town being specified, it in all cases refers to a London thoroughfare. The trades tokens so frequently referred to, it will be scarcely neces sary to state, were the brass farthings issued by shop or tavern keepers, and generally adorned with a representation of the sign of the house. Nearly all the tokens alluded to belong to the latter part of the seventeenth century, mostly to the reign of Charles II. As the work has been two years in the press, the passing eventa mentioned hi the earlier sheets refer to the year 1864. In a few instances it was found impossible to ascertain whether certain signs spoken of as existing really do exist, or whether those mentioned as things of the past are in reality so. The wide distances at which they are situated prevented personal examination in every case, and local his- tories fail to give such small particulars. The rude unattractive woodcuts inserted iu the work are in most instances fac-similes, which have been chosen a*t genuine examples of the style in which the various old signs were represented. The blame of the coarse and primitive execution, therefore, rests entirely with the ancient artist, whether sign painter or engraver. Translations of the various quotations from foreign languages have been added for the following reasons : It was necessary to translate the nume- rous quotations from the Dutch signboards ; Latin was Englished for the benefit of the ladies, and Italian and French extracts were Anglicised to correspond with rest. Errors, both of fact and opinion, may doubtless be discovered in the book. If, however, the compilers have erred in a statement or an explana- tion, they do not wish to remain in the dark, and any light thrown upon a doubtful passage will be acknowledged by them with thanks. Numerous local signs famous in their own neighbourhood will have been omitted, (generally, however, for the reasons mentioned on a preceding page,) whilst many curious anecdotes and particulars concerning their history may be within the knowledge of provincial readers. For any information of this kind the compilers will be much obliged ; and should their work ever pass to a second edition, they hope to avail themselves of such friendly contri- butions. LONDON, June 1863. CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. 9ENERAL SURVEY OP 8IGNBOABD HISTORY, .... 1 CHAPTER IL HISTORIC AND COMMEMORATIVE SIGKS, .... 45 CHAPTER III. HERALDIC AND EMBLEMATIC SIGNS, ..... 101 CHAPTER IV. SIGNS OP ANIMALS AND MONSTERS, . .... ISO CHAPTER V. BIRDS AND FOWLS, ....... 199 CHAPTER VI. FISHES AND INSECTS, ...... 225 CHAPTER VII. PLOWERS, TREES, HERBS, ETC., ..... 233 CHAPTER VIIL BIBLICAL AND RELIGIOUS SIGNS, ..... 253 CHAPTER IX. , MARTYRS, ETC., ...... 279 X CONTENTS. PAOB CHAPTER X. DIGNITIES, TRADES, AND PROFESSIONS, .... 305 CHAPTER XI. THE HOUSE AND THE TABLE, ...... 3ft* CHAPTER XII. DRESS J PLAIN AND ORNAMENTAL, ..... 399 CHAPTER XIII. GEOGRAPHY AND TOPOGRAPHY, . . . . .414 CHAPTER XIV. HUMOROUS AND COMIO, ...... 437 CHAPTER XV. PUNS AND REBUSES, ....... 469 CHAPTER XVL MISCELLANEOUS SIGNS, ...... 476 APPENDIX. BONNELL THORNTON'S SIGNBOARD EXHIBITION, . . .612 INDEX OP ALL THE SIGNS MENTIONED IN THE WORK. 527 PLATE F. BAKER. (Pompeii, A.D. 70.) DAIRY. (Pompeii. A.D. 70.) SHOEMAKER. WINE MERCHANT. (Pompeii, A U 70.) TWO JOLLY BREWERS. (Banks's Bills, i:ro.) CHAPTER I. GENERAL SURVEY OF SIGNBOARD HISTOKY. IN the cities of the East all trades are confined to certain streets, or to certain rows in the various bazars and wekalehs. Jewel- lers, silk-embroiderers, pipe-dealers, traders in drugs, each of these classes has its own quarter, where, in little open shops, the merchants sit enthroned upon a kind of low counter, enjoying their pipes and their coffee with the otium cum dignitate char- acteristic of the Mussulman. The purchaser knows the row to go to ; sees at a glance what each shop contains ; and, if he be an habitue, will know the face of each particular shopkeeper, so that under these circumstances, signboards would be of no use. With the ancient Egyptians it was much the same. As a rulfc, no picture or description affixed to the shop announced the trade of the owner ; the goods exposed for sale were thought sufficient to attract attention. Occasionally, however, there were inscrip- tions denoting the trade, with the emblem which indicated it ;* whence we may assume that this ancient nation was the first to appreciate the benefit that might be derived from signboards. What we know of the Greek signs is very meagre and indefi- nite. Aristophanes, Lucian, and other writers, make frequent allusions, which seem to prove that signboards were in use with Ihe Greeks. Thus Aristotle says : uantg SKI ru\> x.axqXiuv you(p6- (tevo/, (tixgoi /j,ev iisi, (pahovrai Si e'^omg -TrXarSj xai /Sa^.t And Athenseus : fv vrgoregoTg ^x?j &3aarj; THE BALLAD OF THE LONDON ORDJNARJE. 15 The Carpenters will to the Axe, The Colliers will dine at the Sacke, Your Fruterer he to the Cherry-Tree, Good fellowes no liquor will lacke. The Goldsmith will to the Three Cups, For money they hold it as drosse ; Your Puritan to the Pewter Canne, And your Papists to the Crosse. The Weavers will dine at the Shuttle, The Glovers will unto the Glove, The Maydens all to the May den Head, And true Louers unto the Doue. The Sadlers will dine at the Saddle, The Painters will to the Greene Dragon, The Dutchmen will go to the Froe* Where each man will drinke his Flagon. The Chandlers will dine at the SJcales, The Salters at the signe of the Bar/ge ; The Porters take pain at the Labour in Vaine, And the Horse-Courser to the White Nagge. Thus every Man in his humour, That comes from the North or the South, But he that has no money in his purse, May dine at the signe of the Mouth. The Swaggerers will dine at the Fencers, But those that have lost their wits : With Bedlam Tom let that be their home, And the Drumme the Drummers best fits. The Cheter will dine at the Checker, The Picke-pockets in a blind alehouse, Tel on and tride then up Holborne they ride, And they there end at the Gallowes." Thomas Heywood introduced a similar song in his " Rape oi Lucrece." This, the first of the kind we have met with, is in all probability the original, unless the ballad be a reprint from an older one ; but the term Puritan used in it, seems to fix its dato to the seventeenth century. " milE Gintry to the King's Head, J_ The Nobles to the Crown, The Knights unto *he Golden Fleece, And to the Plouyn the Clowne. The Churchmen to the Mitre, The Shepheard to the -Star, The Gardener hies him to the Rose, To the Drum the Man of War. * Froe i.e.. Vrouw. woman. 1 6 THE HISTORY OF SIGNBOARDS. The Huntsmen to the White Hart, To the Skip the Merchants goe, But you that doe the Muses love, The sign called River Po. The Banquerout to the World's End, The Fool to the Fortune hie, Unto the Mouth the Oyster-wife, The Fiddler to the Pie. The Punk unto the Cockatrice,* The Drunkard to the Vine, The Begger to the Bush, there meet, And with Duke Humphrey dine." + After the great fire of 1666, many of the houses that were re- built, instead of the former wooden signboards projecting in the streets, adopted signs carved in stone, and generally painted or gilt, let into the front of the house, beneath the first floor win- dows. Many of these signs are still to be seen, and will be noticed in their respective places. But in those streets not visited by the fire, things continued on the old footing, each shop- keeper being fired with a noble ambition to project his sign a few inches farther than his neighbour. The consequence was that, what with the narrow streets, the penthouses, and the signboards, the air and light of the heavens were well-nigh intercepted from the luckless wayfarers through the streets of London. We can picture to ourselves the unfortunate plumed, feathered, silken gal- lant of the period walking, in his low shoes and silk stockings, through the ill-paved dirty streets, on a stormy November day, when the honours were equally divided between fog, sleet, snow, and rain, (and no umbrellas, be it remembered,) with flower-pots blown from the penthouses, spouts sending down shower-baths from almost every house, and the streaming signs swinging over- head on their rusty, creaking hinges. Certainly the evil was great, and demanded that redress which Charles II. gave in the seventh year of his reign, when a new Act " ordered that in all the streets no signboard shall hang across, but that the sign shall be fixed against the balconies, or some convenient part of the side of the house." The Parisians, also, were suffering from the same enormities ; everything was of Brobdignagian proportions. " J'ai vu," says an essayist of the middle of the seventeenth century, " suspendu aux boutiques des volants de six pieds de hauteur, des peiies grosses * This was in those days a slang term for a mistress. t .. Walk about in St Paul's during the dinner hour. BUSH. (MS. of the Hth century.) 1'LATE I. (Bayenx tapestry, llth cent) In] CROSS. (Luttrell Psalter. 14th century.; ALE-POLE. (Picture of Wouwvermnu, 17th cent.) BLACK JACK AND PEWTER PLATTKR. (Print by Sghavelin, 1480.) EAD. (Cheapside. 1640.) BUSH. (MS. of the 15th cwut.) PARISIAN SIGNBOARD ENORMITIES. 17 comme des tonneaux, des plumes qui allaient au troisieme 6tage." * There, also, the scalpel of the law was at last applied to the evil; for, in 1669, a royal order was issued to prohibit these monstrous signs, and the practice of advancing them too far into the streets, " which made the thoroughfares close in the daytime, and pre- vented the lights of the lamps from spreading properly at night." Still, with all their faults, the signs had some advantages for the wayfarer ; even their dissonant creaking, according to the old weather proverb, was not without its use : " But when the swinging signs your ears offend With creaking noise, then rainy floods impend." GAY'S Trivia, canto i. This indeed, from the various allusions made to it in the literature of the last century, was regarded as a very general hin< to the lounger, either to hurry home, or hail a sedan-chair or coach. Gay, in his didactic -Jldneur poem, points out anotk benefit to be derived from the signboards : " If drawn by Bus'ness to a street unknown, Let the sworn Porter point thee through the town ; Be sure observe the Sigus, for Signs remain Like faithful Landmarks to the walking Train." Besides, they offered constant matter of thought, speculation, and amusement to the curious observer. Even Dean Swift, and the Lord High Treasurer Harley, " Would try to read the lines Writ underneath the country signs." And certainly these productions of the countiy muse are often highly amusing. Unfortunately for the compilers of the present work, they have never been collected and preserved ; although they would form a not unimportant and characteristic contribution to our popular literature. Our Dutch neighbours have paid more attention to this subject, and a great number of their signboard inscriptions were, towards the close of the seventeenth century, gathered in a curious little 12mo volume,t to which we shall often refer. Nay, so much attention was devoted to this branch of literature in that country, that a certain H. van den Berg, in 1693, wrote a little volume,^ which he entitled a "Banquet," giving verses adapted for all manner of shops and signboards ; * " I have seen, hanging from the shops, shuttlecocks six feet high, pearls as large as a hogshead, and feathers reaching up to the third story." t " Koddige en ernstige opschriften op Luiffels, wagens, glazen, uithangbf rden en andere tafereelen door Jeroen Jeroense. Amsterdam, 1682." t "Het gestoffeerde Winkelen en Luifelen Banquet. H. van den Berg. Amster- dam. 1693." l8 THE HISTORY OF SIGNBOARDS. so that a shopkeeper at a loss for an inscription had only to open the book and make his selection ; for there were rhymes in it both serious and jocular, suitable to everybody's taste. The majority of the Dutch signboard inscriptions of that day seem to have been eminently characteristic of the spirit of the nation. No such inscriptions could be brought before "a discerning public," without the patronage of some holy man mentioned in the Scriptures, whose name was to stand there for no other pur- pose than to give the Dutch poet an opportunity of making a jingling rhyme ; thus, for instance, " Jacob was David's neef maar 't waren geen Zwagers. Hier slypt men allerhande Barbiers gereedschappen, ook voor vischwyven en slagers."* Or another example : " Men vischte Moses uit de Biezen, Hier trekt men tanden en Kiezen."t In the beginning of the eighteenth century, we find the following signs named, which puzzled a person of an inquisitive turn of mind, who wrote to the British Apollo^ (the meagre Notes and Queries of those days,) in the hope of eliciting an ex- planation of their quaint combination : " I 'm amazed at the Signs As I pass through the Town, To see the odd mixture : A Magpie and Crown, The Whale and the Crow, The Razor and Hen, The Leg and Seven Stars, The Axe and the Bottle, The Tun and the Lute, The Eagle and Child, The Shovel and Boot." All these signs are also named by Tom Brown : " The first amusements we encountered were the variety and contradictory language of the signs, enough to persuade a man there were no rules of concord among the citizens. Here we saw Joseph's Dream, the Bull and Mouth, the Whale and Crow, the Shovel and Boot, the Leg and Star, the Bible and Swan, the Frying-pan and Drum * "Jacob was David's nephew, but not his brother-in-law. All sorts of barbers' tools ground here, also fishwives' and butchers' knives." t " Moses was pick'd up among the rushes. Teeth and grinders drawn here." J The British Apollo, 1710, vol. iii. p. 34. { Amusements for the Meridian of London, 1708, p. 7& THE OLD COMBINATIONS OF SIGNS. ig the Lute and Tun, the Hog in Armour, and a thousand others that the wise men that put them there can give no reason for." From this enumeration, we see that a century had worked great changes in the signs. Those of the beginning of the seventeenth century were all simple, and had no combinations. But now we meet very heterogeneous objects joined together. Various reasons can be found to account for this. First, it must be borne in mind that most of the London signs had no inscrip- tion to tell the public "this is a lion," or, "this is a bear;" hence the vulgar could easily make mistakes, and call an object by a wrong name, which might give rise to an absurd combination, as in the case of the Leg and Star; which, perhaps, was nothing else but the two insignia of the order of the Garter ; the garter being represented in its natural place, on the leg, and the star of the order beside it. Secondly, the name might be corrupted through faulty pronunciation ; and when the sign was to be repainted, or imitated in another street, those objects would be represented by which it was best known. Thus the Shovel and Boot might have been a corruption of the Shovel and Boat, since the Shovel and Ship is still a very common sign in placea where grain is carried by canal boats ; whilst the Bull and Mouth is said to be a corruption of the Boulogne Mouth the Mouth of Boulogne Harbour. Finally, whimsical shopkeepers would frequently aim at the most odd combination they could imagine, for no other reason but to attract attention. Taking these premises into consideration, some of the signs which so puzzled Tom Brown might be easily accounted for ; the Axe and Bottle, in this way, might have been a corruption of the Battle-axe. The Bible and Swan, a sign in honour of Luther, who is generally represented by the symbol of a swan, a figure of which many Lutheran Churches have on their steeple instead of a weather- cock ; whilst the Lute and Tun was clearly a pun on the name of Luton, similar to the Bolt and Tun of Prior Bolton, who adopted this device as his rebus. Other causes of combinations, and many very amusing and instructive remarks about signs, are given in the following from the Spectator, No. 28, April '2, 1710: " There is nothing like sound literature and good sense to be met with in those objects, that are everywhere thrusting them- selves out to the eye and endeavouring to become visible. Our streets are filled with blue boars, black swans, and red lions, not 2O THE HISTORY OF SIGNBOARDS. to mention flying-pigs and hogs in armour, with many creatures more extraordinary than any in the deserts of Africa. Strange that one, who has all the birds and beasts in nature to choose out of, should live at the sign of an ens rationis. " My first task, therefore, should be like that of Hercules, to clear the city from monsters. In the second place, I should forbid that creatures of jarring and incongruous natures should be joined together in the same sign ; such as the Bell and the Neat's Tongue, the Dog and the Gridiron. The Fox and the Goose may be supposed to have met, but what has the Fox and the Seven Stars to do together ? And when did the Lamb and Dolphin ever meet except upon a signpost ? As for the Cat and Fiddle, there is a conceit in it, and therefore I do not intend that anything I have here said should affect it. I must, however, observe to you upon this subject, that it is usual for a young tradesman, at his first setting up, to add to his own sign that of the master whom he served, as the husband, after mariiage, gives a place to his mistress's arms in his own coat. This I take to have given rise to many of those absurdities which are com- mitted over our heads ; and, as I am informed, first occasioned the Three Nuns and a If are, which we see so frequently joined together. I would therefore establish certain rules for the deter- mining how far one tradesman may give the sign of another, and in what case he may be allowed to quarter it with his own. " In the third place, I would enjoin every shop to make use of a sign which bears some affinity to the wares in which it deals. What can be more inconsistent than to see a bawd at the sign of the Angel, or a tailor at the Lion ? A cook should not live at the Boot, nor a shoemaker at the Roasted Pig ; and yet, for want of this regulation, I have seen a Goat set up before the door of a perfumer, and the French King's Head at a sword- cutler's. " An ingenious foreigner observes that several of those gentle- men who value themselves upon their families, and overlook such as are bred to trades, bear the tools of their forefathers in their coats of arms. I will not examine how true this is in fact ; but though it may not be necessary for posterity thus to set up the sign of their forefathers, I think it highly proper that those who actually profess the trade should shew some such mark of it before their doors. " When the name gives an occasion for an ingenious signpost, tHE "SPECTATOR" ON SIGNS. 21 I would likewise advise the owner to take that opportunity of let- ting the world know who he is. It would have been ridiculous for the ingenious Mrs Salmon to have lived at the sign of the trout, for which reason she has erected before her house the figure of the fish that is her namesake. Mr Bell has likewise distinguished himself by a device of the same nature. And here, sir, I must beg leave to observe to you, that this particular figure of a Bell has given occasion to several pieces of wit in this head. A man of your reading must know that Abel Drugger gained great Applause by it in the time of Ben Jonson. Our Apocryphal heathen god is also represented by this figure, which, in conjunc- tion with the Dragon,* makes a very handsome picture in several of our streets. As for the Bell Savage, which is the sign of a savage man standing by a bell, I was formerly very much puzzled upon the conceit of it, till I accidentally fell into the reading of an old romance translated out of the French, which gives an account of a very beautiful woman, who was found in a wilderness, and is called la Belle Sauvage, and is everywhere translated by our countrymen the Bell Savaged This piece of philology will, I hope, convince you that I have made signposts my study, and consequently qualified myself for the employment which I solicit at your hands. But before I conclude my letter, I must communicate to you another remark which I have made upon the subject with which I am now entertaining you namely, that I can give a shrewd guess at the humour of the inhabitant by the sign that hangs before his door. A surly, choleric fellow generally makes choice of a Bear, as men of milder dispositions frequently live at the Lamb. Seeing a Punch- bowl painted upon a sign near Charing Cross, and very curiously garnished, with a couple of angels hovering over it and squeezing a lemon into it, I had the curiosity to ask after the master of the house, and found upon inquiry, as I had guessed by the little agremens upon his sign, that he was a Frenchman." Another reason for " quartering " signs was on removing from one shop to another, when it was customary to add the sign of the old shop to that of the new one. '' "TTTHEREAS Anthony Wilton, who lived at the GREEN CROSS publick- VV house against the new Turnpike on New Cross Hill, has been removed for two years past to the new boarded house now the sign of the Bell and the Dragon, still to be met on the signboard. t AddUon is wrong in this derivation, (tee under Miscellaneous Signs, at the end.) 22 THE HISTORY OF SIGNBOARDS. GREEN CROSS AND KROSS KEYES on the same hill," &c. Weekly Journal. November 22, 1718. " npHOMAS BLACKALL and Francis Ives, Mercers, are removed from JL the SEVEN STARS on Ludgate Hill to the BLACK LION AND SEVEN STARS over the way." Daily Courant, November 17, 1718. " T)ETER BUNCOMBE and Saunders Dancer, who lived at the NAKED JL. BOY in Great Russell Street, Covent Garden, removed to the NAKED BOY AND MITRE, near Sommerset House, Strand," &c. Postboy. January 2-4, 1711. " T) ICHARD MEARES, Musical Instrument maker, is removed from JLV y' GOLDEN VIOL in Leaden Hall Street to y* North side of St Paul's Churchyard, at y' GOLDEN VIOL AND HAUTBOY, where he sells all sorts of musical instruments," &c. [Bagford bills.] To increase this complexity still more, came the corruption of names arising from pronunciation ; thus Mr Burn, in his intro- duction to the " Beaufoy Tokens," mentions the sign of Pique and Carreau, on a gambling-house at Newport, Isle of Wight, which was Englished into the Pig and Carrot ; again, the same sign at Godmanchester was still more obliterated into the Pig and Checkers. The sign of the Island Queen I have frequently heard, either in jest or in ignorance, called the Iceland Queen. The editor of the recently-published " Slang Dictionary " remarks that he has seen the name of the once popular premier, George Can- ning, metamorphosed on an alehouse-sign into the George and Cannon ; so the GOLDEN FARMER became the Jolly Farmer ; whilst the Four Alls, in Whitechapel, were altered into the Four Awls. Along with this practice, there is a tendency to translate a sign into a sort of jocular slang phrase ; thus, in the seventeenth century, the BLACKMOORSHEAD AND WOOLPACK, in Pimlico, was called the DEVIL AND BAG OP NAILS by those that frequented that tavern, and by the last part of that name the house is still called at the present day. Thus the Elephant and Castle is vul- garly rendered as the Pig and Tinderbox ; the Bear and Ragged Staff, the Angel and Flute; the Eagle and Child, the Bird and Bantling ; the Hog in Armour, the Pig in Misery ; the Pig in the Pound, the Gentleman in Trouble,