An Historical Review For Vintage Porcelain Signs

By Maryanne Goff


During the hey day of the Industrial Revolution many different products were manufactured for the first time. Among those items were vintage porcelain signs. This type of sign was to eventually be seen practically everywhere in some places as many companies used them to place a picture of their logo on it and then hang the sign were everyone could see it. Motorists probably got used to the placards the quickest since they were used at gas stations and roadside restaurants all along newly built roads. There are some remnants still left from those early days and many collectors are anxious to add them to their collections.

The technology for the sign making technique was first established on German soil around 1850. A German metallurgist experimenting with porcelain discovered that when he sprayed layers of the glass like material on steel he could create all sorts of designs. The technology really did not take off until roughly five decades later when it was used for commercial purposes.

Many companies loved to take advantage of this new way of advertising their products. Large corporations such as Coca-Cola had tens of thousands built to place everywhere they could. Small businesses also took advantage of this new advertising method as well and might have only ordered a few placards to place around their immediate vicinity.

The popularity of having a sign made with porcelain and steel faded with the realities people faced during the Second World War. All of sudden metal of all kinds became rare commodities in high demand to make ammunition and armaments for war. One of the sacrifices made for the war was the steel that served as the base for an advertising sign.

Not every sign was used in the war and some were still around after the fighting stopped. A common sight on many roads was a sign of this kind filled with bullet holes from frustrated hunters looking for something to shoot. Other units were stuck in the back rooms of warehouses or in the upper reaches of barns on farmland.

There is a way to tell a fake sign from an original. The original technique was to apply several coats of glass over the metal. The replicas use paint on metal to duplicate the look and are much thinner than the old style.

An original sign can be worth close to fifty thousand dollars in mint condition. Many collectors like them because they can take the thoughts of a collector back to a time when life seemed a little slower and simpler. Before the modern age dawned and the industrial and technological revolutions changed so much on how people live their lives.

The beginning of vintage porcelain signs started when the industrial revolution was taken hold in Western Civilization. From its humble beginning in Germany to it hey day along roadways, people love the look of an old gas station sign. They remind a lot of people of simpler times.




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