AN INTERESTING FRENCH TOLE PEINTE BESPOKE MILLINER'S TRADE O...

Hammer

£700

AN INTERESTING FRENCH TOLE PEINTE BESPOKE MILLINER'S TRADE OR SHOP SIGN EARLY 19TH CENTURYIn the form of a red painted and gilded bicorne hat as worn by Napoleon Bonaparte, modern stand hat 25cm high, 64cm wide, 27cm deep In 1732 Dean Jonathan Swift wrote of Dublin's shop signs 'I have not observed the wit and fancy of this town so much employed in any one Article as that of contriving a variety of signs to hang over houses where punch is served'.Before the general spread of literacy and standardised postal addresses brightly painted signs hung outside shops and businesses to advertise the services or goods within. Shop signs are one of the most long established forms of European folk art. The golden age of trade signs was from the late 17th century to the early 19th century. In the late 18th century, many large cities placed prohibitions on the installation of street furniture as streets became more crowded and inhospitable. This, together with the rise of literacy and the spreading of the use of plate glass allowing for elaborate window displays, put an end to this particular form of street art.