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"QUANTUM SHOT" #581
Link - article by Simon Rose

      Good signs will help you remember which pubs you visited, what you did
        there, and is it safe to return

      Everyone loves the idea of the cozy pub with its dark wooden beams, dark
      wood and cozy fireplace, even though the traditional British pub has been
      in decline in recent years. However, pubs and their distinctive signs are
      often cited as one of the main things people want to see preserved in our
      ever-changing world.

      
      (images via
        1,
        2,
        3)

      
      
      (images via 1,
        2,
        3, 4)

      Telling a pub sign history is perhaps the safest way to start up a
        conversation

      Britain’s colourful pub signs speak volumes about the country’s equally
      colourful history, as well as depicting folklore, heraldry and social
      customs. Pubs were never named by accident and each sign invariably has a
      story behind it. The artwork on Britain’s pub signs is inspired by royalty
      and nobility, religion and the church, military heroes and battles,
      occupations and trades, myths and legends, sporting activities and
      pastimes, along with numerous other sources.

      
      Sign relates to a nearby stone. It has a hole in it which one can blow
        through... for fun? (images via
        1,
        2)

      In 2007, the top ten most popular names for pubs in the UK were
      Crown (704) Red Lion (668) Royal Oak (541) Swan (451) White Hart (431)
        Railway (420) Plough (413) White Horse (379) Bell (378) New Inn (372). This article does not aim to mention every single pub in the UK, or
      every one with an unusual name, but delves into the history of pub signs,
      the stories behind them and examines some of the interesting names I
      discovered in the course of my research.

      
      (images via
        1,
        2)

      The Romans first took the basic concept of the pub to Britain in 43
      AD. In Rome, it was traditional for landlords to hang branches of vine
      leaves outside their premises to indicate the trade that was practiced
      within. However, with vines lacking in Britain, they hung any type of
      evergreen plant over the door and there are pubs in the UK called the
      Bush or Holly Bush to this day. The Romans built an
      extensive road network and with large numbers of troops moving around the
      country, roadside inns opened at suitable stopping points. Some modern
      roads still follow the route of these ancient highways, so it’s entirely
      plausible that some inns have been on the same site ever since the Roman
      era.

      "Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem" starts with a pint

      By the twelfth century, people were traveling the country visiting
      cathedral towns on pilgrimage, such as to the shrine of Thomas Beckett in
      Canterbury. Chaucer’s pilgrims in the Canterbury Tales began their journey
      at the Tabard, a real inn located in London. Other inns and taverns
      catered to pilgrims and knights on their way to the Crusades in the Holy
      Land. Ye Olde Trip to Jerusalem, established in 1189, claims to be
      the oldest inn pub in England and has cellars which are carved from the
      rocks beneath Nottingham Castle.

      
      (images via 1,
        2)

      Pub signs on the same theme are the Saracen’s Head and the
      Lamb and Flag, the flag representing the crusaders, with Jesus as
      the lamb. Another sign related to an event in the medieval period is at
      the Magna Carta pub in Lincoln. The Bishop of Lincoln was one of
      the signatories to the famous document in 1215 and for centuries one of
      the four remaining copies was kept at the cathedral, before being put on
      display at Lincoln Castle.

      
      (images via 1,
        2)

      Long after the era of wandering pilgrims and crusading knights, travelers
      would again provide the impetus for the naming of pubs. In the eighteenth
      century, coaching inns became established with such predictable names as
      Coach and Horses, Farrier’s Arms or
      Horse and Groom and as the Industrial Revolution developed, canals
      were built to carry goods and raw materials, bringing with them pubs
      called Waterway or Navigation. By the middle of the
      nineteenth century, with the growth of the rail network, most towns in the
      country had a pub with some connection to trains, such as the
      Railway Arms or the Station Hotel.

      
      
      (images via
        1,
        2,
        3,
        4)

      Pub signs as we know them today
      originated with a Royal Act in 1393, in which Richard II declared
      that "whosoever shall brew ale in the town with intention of selling it
      must hang out a sign, otherwise he shall forfeit his ale." Since most of
      the population at the time was illiterate, pictorial signs were used
      instead of lettering to advertise premises selling beer and ale.

      Almost heaven, serving heavenly ales

      The first pictures were probably based on
      stained glass windows common in churches and cathedrals, since
      images of angels, saints, Noah’s Ark and other religious symbols were
      easily recognizable.

      
      (images via 1,
        2)

      However things changed in the Reformation in the sixteenth century, with
      the dissolution of the monasteries. Pub owners thought it wise to change
      their names to show allegiance to the crown, renaming themselves the
      Kings Arms or King’s Head, while others eliminated any
      Catholic connections. St Peter, shown as the guardian of the gates
      of Heaven, was turned into the Crossed Keys and some Noah’s Arks
      became Ships, although obviously establishments located in coastal
      towns had pubs with nautical names for a different reason. Henry VIII also
      redistributed church lands, and granted noble titles to his supporters,
      hence some landlords renamed their pubs after the local family who were
      now the new power in the area, hence pubs with names like the
      Duke of Sussex or the Devereux, named after the Earls of
      Essex.

      
      (images via
        1,
        2,
        3)

      Religious names did survive in some cases though and signs showing bells
      in one form or another are still seen often in Britain. While
      St. George and his conflict with the dragon clearly have religious
      origins, St. George is also the patron saint of England and is perhaps
      considered more as a symbol of patriotism than a connection to the Church.

      
      (images via 1,
        2)

      Royalty features heavily in pub signs, whether in portraits of monarchs or
      other related items, such as crowns, coats or arms heraldry and so on. The
      Rising Sun, for example, was the badge of Edward III. The
      White Hart was the badge of Richard II, who first decreed that pubs
      should have exterior signs, so it’s hardly surprising that the White Hart
      is one of the most popular names. The Red Lion is also a very
      common sight in towns around the UK; it is also one of the symbols of
      Scotland and it has been suggested that the popular pub sign might have
      originated with King James I on his accession to the throne of England in
      1603.

      
      (images via
        1,
        2,
        3)

      The original story behind the Blue Boar (image in the middle
        above) is hard to substantiate, but is supposed to refer to the Earl of
        Oxford, who was part of Henry Tudor’s army at the Battle of Bosworth.
        Richard III, who was killed in the battle, used a white boar as his own
        emblem and the legend states that after the king was dead, all the white
        boar pub signs were quickly painted blue, to demonstrate loyalty to the
        new regime. Very hard to prove after all this time, of course, but it’s
        an interesting tale, nonetheless.
      
The Rose and Crown is also derived from royal history, but there are two main theories as to its origin. The first relates to the Wars of the Roses between the house of Lancaster, symbolized by the red rose, and the house of York, who used the white rose, to control the crown of England. The second theory relates to the marriage, which effectively ended the rivalry of York and Lancaster, when the victor of the battle of Bosworth in 1485, Henry Tudor, married Elizabeth of York, reuniting the warring branches of the royal family and founding the Tudor dynasty. (images via 1, 2, 3) Charles II was the inspiration behind pubs called the Royal Oak (see above), which often depict a painting of a tree with a crown resting in the branches. After the civil war, the future king was on the run from the parliamentary forces and hid undetected in the branches of an oak tree, despite his pursuers being directly below him. The King's Head will frown at you, if you approach it too drunk The King’s Head is a popular name for pubs and many different monarchs can be seen on the signs hanging outside. In 1714, the era of the House of Hanover began in England and from then until 1830, there were four kings in succession called George, hence the large number of pubs with this name in the UK. The image on the right - are you paying attention? - depicts Jimi Hendrix, a modern variation on the "King's Head" idea: (images via 1, 2, 3) Although England has had far less queens than kings throughout it’s history, queens also appear on pub signs, such as the well-known monarchs Elizabeth I and Victoria (even Prince Albert, Victoria’s beloved consort, has pubs named after him).
This unusual design that looks like a huge postage stamp is actually based on the penny black, the world's first adhesive stamp of a public postal system, issued by the UK in 1840. (images via 1, 2) Sports of various kinds are frequently represented on pub signs, such as the Cricketer’s Arms or the Angler’s Rest in more modern times, with such names as Greyhound, Dog and Duck, Fox and Hounds and the Bird on Hand, which denoted falconry, dating from earlier eras. Signs like these often advertised the entertainment on offer inside the premises to the largely illiterate population. (images via 1, 2) The Bear or Bear and Ragged Staff, was a reference to bear baiting, but is also related to the noble Neville family and Warwick the Kingmaker. Many pubs with bull in the name would have held bull baiting events and the word cock on the sign would let customers know the pub offered cockfighting. However, any pub called the Cock and Bottle has nothing to do with cockfighting, but simply meant that both bottled and draught beers were available, the cock referring to a beer tap. (images via 1, 2) Some pubs were named for the main occupation of a geographic area, such as the Golden Fleece, an obvious reference to mythology, but also indicating a connection to the wool trade. Other professions present in pub signs are coopers, bricklayers, masons, plumbers, carpenters, blacksmiths and many more. Pubs would be meeting places for local tradesmen and even served as a type of employment office. (images via 1, 2, 3) (right image credit: Cory Doctorow) CONTINUE TO PART TWO! -> Simon Rose is the author of science fiction and fantasy novels for children, including The Alchemist's Portrait, The Sorcerer's Letterbox, The Clone Conspiracy, The Emerald Curse, The Heretic's Tomb and The Doomsday Mask. CONTINUE TO "BEST BEERS!" ARTICLE ->



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YOUR COMMENTS::

18 Comments:

Blogger prince igor the geniatic said...

there is a certain famous pub near liverpool street in london which i thought ought to go on this list. it has a rather odd name: dirty dick's.

yes, really.

http://www.dirtydicks.co.uk/ (don't worry, this really is just the website for the pub)

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Anonymous Website Design Calgary said...

What a great article, Simon. I just have to find the one with 'Crap Beer'. You know that will draw in more people than it will repel!
Oh and Whiskey, as soup of the day. Must be in Scotland!

~Nick Burman

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Anonymous Ben S said...

There's a pub in Middlesbrough called the hairy lemon, that's pretty colourful !

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Anonymous Anonymous said...

the bear and ragged staff is also the symbol of the entire Dudley lineage, which may be part of it also...

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Anonymous Anna said...

What a great post, I really enjoyed it! :-) Dirty Dick's as Prince Igor mentioned is really quite a lovely pub! My local near work is called The Walrus & Carpenter which I like a lot, and we also have The Hung, Drawn & Quartered nearby - pretty much next to the Tower.

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Anonymous LittleInsect said...

Other common ones in the UK are The Star, The Green Man and The White Lion.
I grew up in a small village, with approx 30 houses, one church, and 4 pubs either in the village or nearby. Not a bad average! It is easy to see why the village pub was often the centre of village life - and indeed, most pubs were built in the immediate vicinity of the church. There was The County Members (in the village), The Royal Oak (Newinngreen), The Welcome Stranger (Court-At-Street), and the Shipbuilder's Arms (West Hythe). The latter was named when it was a port, although it is now come 2 miles from the sea. Sadly, a lot of English pubs have been either closed, or taken over by huge 'gastropub' chains, and the names changed from the historical ones to such stupidities as 'The Frog & Nightgown' and 'The Pitcher & Piano'

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Blogger John A said...

Good 'un.

I've been intrigued, if mildly, by this for years. Started when in a novel the detective-hero pontificated on the subject, tracing many to religious themes: e.g. "The Goat and Compasses" did not refer to a sea-faring nanny but to the "God Encompasseth" sermon subject.

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Blogger Luca said...

how about the Famous Cock in Islington, London?
I will take a picture tomorrow, just have to cross the road :)

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Anonymous Will said...

The first Golden Fleece picture looks an awful lot like my local, hmmm...

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Blogger Nick Hallard said...

As the inn sign artist responsible for the Fox & Hounds (on the far left of the 'Sporting' three), its nice to see such interest in an otherwise waning tradition. I hadn't actually seen a photo of it in its place until now, so thanks for that!
I also have painted a Prince Albert from the same portrait as the one above, but using the whole image. I hand-paint everything and all my signs are unique, but some on this page are stock library images, digitally printed onto vinyl stickers and appearing on different signs for pubs with the same name.
I wouldn't be so bold as to advertise on this board but if you want to visit my website, Google my name!
Cheers, Nick Hallard

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Blogger Unknown said...

Heavy, firm bars with wooden bar stools are not the only thing that defines a pub. But I don't think anywhere else in the world would have pub with such outrageous signs.

Nicolette
http://www.furnitureanddesignideas.com/

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Anonymous Anonymous said...

The "Crap Beer, Bad Hospitality" etc one is in Bradford-on-Avon, Wiltsthire.

B-o-A also has a good line in pubs with bad canal-related puns as names (may or may not be deliberate):

The Lock Inn (i.e. after-hours drinking session)
The Barge Inn (i.e. crash through the doors)

Bonus pun pub:
The Dandy Lion (picture of a swaggering lion in a waistcoat, top hat, etc)

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Blogger Shelly M. Burrows said...

I've been in the bear & rugged staff, it's in Bristol. Fabulous place!

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Anonymous Dereck said...

It's really interesting, especially because I'm visiting England in 1 month.

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Anonymous Allan (Scotland) said...

"Oh and Whiskey, as soup of the day. Must be in Scotland"

Whisky is spelt without an 'e' in Scotland.
Maybe a Scottish theme pub though :-)

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Anonymous Marlene Affeld said...

Love your photos of Englands pub signs. Great photography of a very interesting subject. Like the lighting and play on color.

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Anonymous custom pub signs said...

Wow, this is one of the most thorough explanations I've read on the history of the pub sign. Makes me admire even more the craftsmanship that I for one always thought was cool. Wish we had more chances to design and make signs like these..

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Blogger Richard Collins said...

Wealdstone has "The Case is altered" - something of a mystery as the sign shows a pair of flamenco dancers.

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