A week in London this spring left me with a trove of signs to share. Some are macabre, indeed, such as the first pair here. Could put you off your appetite for pie and a pint at this pub near the Tower of London, but most fall into other categories: 'You have to live here to understand it,' 'Oh, my, really?' 'That makes sense, but...' and more. Some, like the title image represent places whose name origin goes way back...
Have fun!
Flytippers, it turns out, are people who dump rubbish in unauthorized places or who dump streetside trash containers looking for 'treasure.'
Clever storefronts...
Social commentary... and a bit of gentle exasperation.
Businesses with provocative names...
At Borough Market, a mix of ancient signs and clever new ones...
Several nicely-done pub signs....
An elaborate theatre facade, and a humbler one for 'The noted house for Paper Bags.' Someone has to be #1, right?
St John might leave you wondering about the business, but the clothing store AllSaints, a men's clothing outlet, is certainly not shy about its name!
A spot of politics and satire...
And, because he's possibly unique, a 'Collage/Broccoli Artist.'
Oh, and about Elephant and Castle? It's a neighborhood in the London Borough of Southwark. The most widely-accepted story is that the name comes from an 18th-century coaching inn built on the site of the former Cutlers' Guild. An elephant (source of ivory for handles) with a castle-like howdah on its back, was a symbol of the master cutlers.
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