From an email received 31 March 2014.

Dear Sir,

I found this wooden pub sign in a remote antique store in the Pacific Northwest of the US. The history of the sign is unknown by the shopkeeper. They anticipated that the sign might be from the 1950s. It is hand-painted on wood, and has been in the shop for perhaps 10+ years without any knowledge as to how they got this. I saw some information on a web site and perhaps someone can refer\direct me to a historian that might have some knowledge.

Regards,

Jim McNally.

The above sign (left) has just (21 April 2018) turned up again on the internet, although it's not quite the same as the one on the right.

Looks like another one has turned up, and again it's slightly different. This one was kindly sent to me from Sherry Scruggs.

Seems there's no ending to these, the latest has turned up again.

This time from the TV programme "Antiques Road Trip" broadcast 8 October 2020. The road tripper bought it in Ireland somewhere, and it eventually sold for about £25.

Michael Mirams says the following:- Bearing in mind the other various versions of this sign you’ve been sent, I’m of the opinion that these aren’t ‘genuine’ inn signs at all, but were produced by someone dabbling in the nostalgia market – the lack of a brewer’s name on the signs are a giveaway. For the same reason, I’m sure there is no connection with Kent or its pubs, what do you think?

Well, unless the artist lives here I suppose. Paul Skelton.

They still keep coming. The latest being sent from, Per Jørgen Heimdal as shown below. he says he bought this off ebay for $600 many years ago.

And another one comes to light. This time bought in an antiques shop In Connecticut, US, for about $175, in 2019. Vittoria Schults says:- "I also bought an "Iron Duke" sign. Here are photos of mine. They now hang in the Pub room at The DWIGHT D Hotel in Philadelphia PA.

I am pretty sure that the Royal Dragoon sign never hung outside a pub but with so many of them appearing and all obviously hand made I am beginning to wonder whether they were part of an apprenticeship scheme for budding sign writers, and of course sold on afterward.

The "Iron Duke" sign, that one I would say is a genuine sign that used to hang outside a pub in the London area. The Fullers Griffin brewery, of course being located in Chiswick Lane, South London.

I expect the "Iron Duke" in question was possibly the one in Mayfair, and being outside of Kent isn’t one I am researching. It appears to still be open (2022) be nice to know if they have any old photos of it. https://www.irondukemayfair.co.uk

Hi there was doing a little research on a pub sign I bought a few years ago at an antique auction and I found you have a whole page on it. Attached is a picture of mine, I paid about 50 bucks for it in Langley B.C Canada. Just wondering if it was a good deal or not?

Kenneth Lewis.

Hello,

In response to you invitation to submit versions of this pub signs, here attached you will the one I bought this morning in south of France. The seller is from a village named Rougiers and it had approximately for 40 years.

It seems painted but I an not proficient enough to be sure at 100%

Reminds of the signs produced by Corner Shop.

Regards,

Andrian Mihailov.

I was trying to find some information on this item and found this thread. I would be interested in knowing the value of it, but understand if that isn’t possible since their seems to be so few of these in existence.

I found this one tucked away in a storage closet in a Car dealership in Texas along with about a hundred other vintage European items and antiques.

Regards,

Jeffrey Brooks.

Jeffery goes on to say:- I have checked out your research and I believe that I have actually managed to acquire the same piece that Sherry Scruggs posted back in 2018.

The damage on the top of the frame seems to be exactly the same and so is the crack of the left side of the painting.

It looks as if it has gained a few new scuffs over the past six years but I believe it's the exact same one as even the landscape in the background is the exact same.

Hey, i have another one here. There are screws on the right and left but it seems its in a very good condition.

Kind regards,

Tobias Reinhardt.

This is yet another in the same style but different from the others. I usually tell by looking at the pattern and  counting the spots on the saddle cloth, although this one has a rock bottom right as well, not shown on any of the others.