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Signs For Sale
Vintage Blue Iron Facade Letter U, 1970s
Located in Kojetice, CZ
This vintage industrial facade letter “U” was made during the 1970s in Italy and comes from an old advertising banner. The weight of the letter is 0,8 kg.
Category

1970s Italian Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Iron

Large Vintage Grey Iron Facade Letter C , 1970s
Located in Kojetice, CZ
This vintage industrial facade letter “C” was made during the 1970s in Italy and comes from an old advertising banner. The weight of the letter is 1,5 kg.
Category

1970s Italian Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Iron

Monumental Early 20th-Century European Carved Wooden Axe Trade Sign, 66"" Long
Located in New York, NY
A Monumental early 20th-century European carved wooden axe trade sign, measuring an impressive 60" in length. This extraordinary piece, with its distinctively oversized design, was l...
Category

Early 20th Century French Signs

Materials

Wood

Giant Art Deco Brass Fountain Pen and Mechanical Pencil Display Models
By Wahl Eversharp Co
Located in Hanover, MA
SATURDAY SALE Oversized retail advertising presentation brass fountain pen and mechanical pencil display signs from the early 1920s when they would have been featured within a wood and glass display cabinet at the pen counter of a stationary store. Originally the fountain pen would have been marked on its side "Wahl Pen...
Category

1920s American Art Deco Vintage Signs

Materials

Brass

19th Century Rustic English Private Land Owners Trespassers Sign
Located in Godshill, Isle of Wight
19th century rustic private land owners trespassers sign This sign is made in elm with metal lettering set in relief it says Notice No road Trespassers Wil Be prosecuted By...
Category

Mid-19th Century Rustic Antique Signs

Materials

Wood

Vintage Blue Iron Facade Letter Z, 1970s
Located in Kojetice, CZ
This vintage industrial facade letter “Z” was made during the 1970s in Italy and comes from an old advertising banner. The weight of the letter is 0,8 kg.
Category

1970s Italian Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Iron

Large Vintage Illuminated Letter N , 1980s
Located in Kojetice, CZ
This vintage industrial illuminated letter N was made in United Kingdom during the 1980s and comes from an old advertising banner BENTLEY It features a black metal body and a white ...
Category

1980s British Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Iron

Early 20th Century Double Sided Toleware French Dentists Trade Sign
Located in London, GB
Early 20th Century Double Sided Toleware French Dentists Trade Sign An original untouched example of an early 20th Century toleware double sided Frenc...
Category

1910s French Late Victorian Vintage Signs

Materials

Sheet Metal

Antique Dutch Enameled Metal Farm Animal Feed Sign
Located in Rio Vista, CA
Antique Dutch enameled metal farm animal feed sign featuring a bull and a rooster. Metal Folk Art sign with original enamel finish and a patinated metal p...
Category

20th Century Dutch Folk Art Signs

Materials

Metal, Enamel

Vintage Blue Plastic Illuminated Letter R , 1970s
Located in Kojetice, CZ
This vintage industrial blue plastic illuminated letter “ r “ was made in Italy during the 1970s and comes from an old advertising banner. It is equipped with a LED strip .The weight...
Category

1970s Italian Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Plastic

Vintage Grey Illuminated Letter R , 1970s
Located in Kojetice, CZ
This vintage industrial illuminated letter “ R “ was made in Germany during the 1970s and comes from an old advertising banner. It features a black metal body and a grey plastic cove...
Category

1970s German Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Metal

Vintage Grey Illuminated Letter E, 1970s
Located in Kojetice, CZ
This vintage industrial illuminated letter “ e “ was made in Germany during the 1970s and comes from an old advertising banner. It features a black metal body and a grey plastic cove...
Category

1970s German Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Metal

19th Century French Red Boot Maker Store Sign, Antique Parisian Metal Wall Décor
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
An antique exterior sign of a Parisian shoemaker in painted metal of red color, designed as a hanging boot in a rounded shape. The French sign holder was handcrafted in wrought iron, in good condition. Minor fading, scratches due to age. Wear consistent with age and use. Circa 1900, 14 Rue de l’Arrivee, Paris, France. A collection of Roxane Debuisson. Roxane Debuisson was a famous collector born in Paris, France and passed away in Paris, in 2018. Debuisson’s personal life and professional training remains lost in history. In the 1960s-1970s she spent her time collecting elements of Parisian patrimonies or heritage. Among her exceptional collection, she was collecting topographical paintings and drawings, vintage street signs and broken armatures from the metro...
Category

19th Century French Belle Époque Antique Signs

Materials

Metal, Wrought Iron

Vintage "African Queen" Boat Name Sign, circa 1950s
Located in South Bend, IN
A fantastic vintage "African Queen" boat name sign, circa 1950s Measures: 59.63" W x 0.75" D x 10.13" H. Hand carved wood and paint Very good ...
Category

20th Century Mid-Century Modern Signs

Materials

Wood, Paint

1930s Wood Campgrounds Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vintage wood campgrounds sign from the 1930s. Sign was used to let people use shovels and supplies and make sure they are returned. Great rustic sign, cool piece of Americana. 2.5 fe...
Category

1930s American Vintage Signs

Materials

Wood

Hand Painted Wooden Circus Ticket Office Sign
Located in San Francisco, CA
ABOUT A hand painted circus ticket office sign. CREATOR Unknown. DATE OF MANUFACTURE c.2000-2005. MATERIALS AND TECHNIQUES Painted Wood. CONDITION Good. Wear con...
Category

21st Century and Contemporary Industrial Signs

Materials

Wood

Antique French Tole Cobbler Sign
Located in West Palm Beach, FL
19th century hand-painted tole shoemaker sign.
Category

19th Century French Antique Signs

Vintage Letter N, 1950s
Located in Kojetice, CZ
This vintage letter comes from the old advertising banner. It is made from dyed concrete. It weighs 6 kg.
Category

Mid-20th Century Czech Industrial Signs

Materials

Concrete

Advertising Glass Sign "Trink Coca Cola - Coke". 1950 - 1959
Located in CADALSO, ES
Great condition
Category

Mid-20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Signs

Materials

Glass

Grammy Museum Los Angeles Freeway Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Super cool Los Angeles freeway sign. 10.5 feet long and 3 feet tall. Metal sign, likely from 10 Freeway. Sign depicts the exit ramp for the GRAMMY MUSEUM,...
Category

Early 2000s American Signs

Materials

Steel

19th Century Reliquiae Sanctorum Sign
Located in Pease pottage, West Sussex
Remarkable original "Reliquiae Sanctorum" sign on sheet metal. Later mounted to weathered backboards. Italy, Circa 1850.
Category

Mid-19th Century Italian Antique Signs

Materials

Sheet Metal

Phillips 66 Cast Aluminum Gas Sign
Located in Asbury Park, NJ
1940's Cast Aluminum Phillips 66 Gas Station Sign. This amazing piece of history is made up of individual letters that can be hung by each letter or can we attached to a support on the back as we did in the photos. Letters were professionally restored. This is a gas sign...
Category

1940s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Signs

Materials

Aluminum

Large Midcentury Porcelain Letter "B" from the Stix Baer and Fuller Sign
Located in St. Louis, MO
Large 44.75" H porcelain letter B, from the former Stix, Baer & Fuller sign. This letter was once on the Mid-Century Modern Stix, Baer & Fuller department store in the Westroads Shop...
Category

1950s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Signs

Materials

Porcelain

Early-20th Century Boul Club Sign
Located in London, GB
Early-20th Century Boul Club Sign A complete one off, in the form of a hand carved / painted oversized Boul club advertising sign dated 1922. Completely u...
Category

Early 20th Century French Folk Art Signs

Materials

Pine

Vintage Swiss Two Sided Train Signal Sign
Located in San Diego, CA
Super cool and hard to find vintage Swiss two sided train signal sign, circa 1940s. The sign is made of metal and painted yellow with the number "5" in bl...
Category

Mid-20th Century Swiss Signs

Materials

Metal

Iron Bull Butcher Trade Sign with Hanging Bracket from the Early 20th Century
Located in Atlanta, GA
An iron butcher trade sign in the shape of a bull or a cow from the early 1900s. This iron trade sign was born in the early 20th century and was probably adorning the storefront of a...
Category

Early 20th Century Unknown Signs

Materials

Iron

Anonymous Abstract Geometric Painted Board
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Bold geometric abstract board found in Texas. We have a collection of these boards from an anonymous artist. Painted on recycled cupboard doors, table tops, stool tops and bread boar...
Category

Mid-20th Century American Folk Art Signs

Materials

Wood

Vintage Wooden Bike Route Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vintage wood bike route signs from Berlin, CT. Scratches and signs of use. Very unusual to find this sign in wood as opposed to metal. From the parks and rec...
Category

1960s American Vintage Signs

Materials

Wood

Early 20th Century City of Westminster London Antique Milk Glass Street Sign
Located in Port Jervis, NY
Fabulous early milk glass street sign from the City of Westminster London. Original wood frame in excellent vintage condition. A couple of cracks in the glass on right lower corner. ...
Category

1910s English Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Milk Glass, Hardwood

Antique NOS Reed Vise Tin on Cardboard Sign
Located in Dekalb, IL
c. 1920s; mfd. by The H. D. Beach Co. (Coshocton, OH) for Reed Manufacturing Co. - Erie, PA Antique new-old-stock tin-over-cardboard (TOC) advertising sign. This piece advertises R...
Category

Early 20th Century American Signs

Materials

Tin

Early 20th Century Double Sided Metal Boot Makers Trade Sign
Located in London, GB
Early 20th century double sided metal boot makers trade sign. A highly decorative double sided hand painted metal French boot makers trade sign, Still attached to its original hin...
Category

1930s French Folk Art Vintage Signs

Materials

Metal

1930s Original Gilbeys Invalid Port Enamel Advertising Pub Garden Bar Sign
Located in Sherborne, Dorset
For sale we have a very striking, original 1930s/40s advertising sign in red and white enamel on black-ground for ‘Gilbey’s Invalid Port’. The enamel sign has the most amazing patina...
Category

1930s British Industrial Vintage Signs

Materials

Metal, Enamel

Advertising Glass Sign "Trink Coca Cola - Eiskalt". 1950 - 1959
Located in CADALSO, ES
Great condition
Category

Mid-20th Century German Mid-Century Modern Signs

Materials

Glass

Monumental "Danish Designs" Wooden Advertising Sign
Located in Peabody, MA
Monumental 67" wide (5 1/2 feet) double-sided surfboard style advertising sign in painted wood with 1/2" raised wood lettering, for "Danish Designs", ca. 1960s. From a modern furnis...
Category

1960s Vintage Signs

Materials

Paint, Wood

Rare Glass Pedestrian Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Fantastic glass pedestrian street crossing sign. Great coloring. Excellent condition. Illuminates beautifully in sunlight.
Category

1950s American Vintage Signs

Vintage Pair of Hand Carved Wood Silhouette Figures
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Whimsical pair of wood silhouettes in the shape of a man and woman. Both life-sized. Both wearing cowboy hats. Great for a bar or placed outside against a wa...
Category

1970s American Vintage Signs

Materials

Wood

Los Angeles Highway Trash Removal Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Los Angeles trash cleanup sign. Emerald green background with a man in work clothes picking up trash. Great coloring and patina. Cool vintage graphics...
Category

Early 2000s American Signs

Materials

Steel

Rare Engraved Glass on Metal Sign from a London Cigarette's Seller, circa 1900
Located in Marcq-en-Barœul, Hauts-de-France
This rare engraved sign is made of glass on metal. This is a a very unusual piece from a London cigarette's seller. English. Circa 1900.
Category

Early 1900s English Art Nouveau Antique Signs

Materials

Metal

1950s Light UP "ROOMS FOR LET" & "Chambres a Louer" SIGN, fRENCH & eNGLISH
Located in Buffalo, NY
Charming 1940s / 1950s Light UP "ROOMS FOR LET" & "Chambres a Louer" SIGN, Unusual written in fRENCH & eNGLISH,,
Category

1950s French Mid-Century Modern Vintage Signs

Materials

Metal

Antique Chinese Wooden Sign Board with Calligraphy from the 19th Century
Located in Yonkers, NY
This antique Chinese horizontal sign board made during the 19th century displays Chinese characters carved in wood in a splendid calligraphic style. The frame is enhanced by red and ...
Category

19th Century Chinese Antique Signs

Materials

Wood

Vintage "NEW" Road Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Interesting vintage road sign made of steel. Depicts the word "NEW" at the bottom with an orange reflective panel above. Great vintage condition.
Category

1970s American Vintage Signs

Materials

Steel

Vintage Neighborhood Watch Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vintage neighborhood watch sign. Much larger than the standard sized sign. Great muted coloring and graphics. Good vintage condition.
Category

1990s American Signs

Materials

Steel

Matched Pair of Edwardian Milk Glass Shop Signs
Located in London, GB
Matched pair of Edwardian milk glass shop signs. We share what we love, and we love this rare, matched pair of Edwardian milk glass shop signs. One stating “All kinds of repairs” ...
Category

1910s British Edwardian Vintage Signs

Materials

Milk Glass

James Purdy & Sons Enamel Sign Wall Plaque
Located in Godshill, Isle of Wight
James Purdy & Sons enamel sign wall plaque Rare piece indeed this enamel sign was made for the Famous London Shop, it has the Royal appointment to HM t...
Category

Early 20th Century Folk Art Signs

Materials

Enamel

Late 19th Century Gold Gilt Zinc Weathervane
Located in London, GB
Late 19th century gold gilt zinc weathervane A true working example of a late 19th century zinc weathervane in the form a rooster. With its original gold gi...
Category

1890s French Early Victorian Antique Signs

Materials

Zinc

St Paul’s Churchyard, City of London Glass Edwardian Street Sign
Located in Godshill, Isle of Wight
St Paul’s Churchyard, City of London glass Edwardian Street Sign This is a City of London Street sign, it is set in its Cast Iron Frame, it is ma...
Category

Early 20th Century Industrial Signs

Materials

Iron

Los Angeles Freeway Sign 'Beach Cities"
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Monumental Los Angeles freeway sign from the 90s. Beach Cities sign showing people which way to Manhattan Beach, Redondo Beach and other cities. Reflectiv...
Category

1990s American Signs

Materials

Aluminum

Vintage 1958 Jos. Schiltz Large 73" Lighted Brewing Beer Advertisement Bar Sign
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Vintage 1958 Jos. Schiltz Large 73" Lighted Brewing Beer Advertisement Bar Sign. Item features a large impressive size, fluorescent lighted bulb interior, wonderful color, original l...
Category

1950s Modern Vintage Signs

Materials

Metal

Large Painted Decorative Wood And Metal “Etoile” Sign
Located in Bridgeport, CT
A Decorative sign. In separate white painted metal capital letters with applied mirror fleur-de-lis motifs on the ends on a gray painted wood ground. Dimensions: 74" L, 2" D, 12 1/...
Category

20th Century Hollywood Regency Signs

Materials

Metal

405 Freeway Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Interstate 405 freeway sign. Cool piece of California signage. Good vintage condition. Little stars imprinted thought the metal sign.
Category

1990s American Signs

Materials

Steel

Antique Painted Wood "No Dumping Here" Sign
Located in Brooklyn, NY
Antique, hand-painted, folk art, wood "No Dumping Here" sign.
Category

Early 20th Century American Folk Art Signs

Materials

Wood

Metal Restaurant Sign
Located in Round Top, TX
Metal restaurant sign from a restaurant in Buenos Aires. Nice size and paint.
Category

1950s Argentine Vintage Signs

Materials

Metal, Tin

19th Century Large Apothecary Chemist Carboy Pharmacy Shop Trade Sign
Located in Lowestoft, GB
A 19th century hand blown glass chemist window display carboy. Used as a symbol of the pharmacy from the 17th century to the early 20th century. A rare example with a hollow cut ...
Category

Mid-19th Century English Antique Signs

Materials

Blown Glass

Rare 1880s Handmade Copper/Bronze Sign, Plaque "J.W.Williams Drop Forgings"
By E. N. Little & Sons 1
Located in Buffalo, NY
Rare 1880s handmade copper/bronze sign plaque "J.W.WILLIAMS DROP FORGINGS." Monumental sign/plaque salvaged from the turn of the century J W WILLIAMS factory in Brooklyn New York, ex...
Category

1880s American Industrial Antique Signs

Materials

Bronze, Copper

Chinese Signboard with Gold Coloured Calligraphy & Hanging Hook from Hardwood
Located in Jimbaran, Bali
With a wood coloured base this signboard (crafted entirely from wood) highlights 3 large gold coloured Chinese Characters. The signboard dates to the Mid-20th Century and has aged be...
Category

Mid-20th Century Chinese Chinoiserie Signs

Materials

Wood, Paint

19th Century Cobbler Trade Sign
Located in Nantucket, MA
A carved cobbler's boot-form trade sign, in old gold paint. Carved in two pieces of pine, capped with lead, circa 1870 Very good condition, measures: 14" x 9 ½”.
Category

Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs

Materials

Lead

Patrick McAllister Tugboat Sign
Located in Norwell, MA
Wheelhouse ship's nameboard for the McAllister Towing Tug Patrick R. McAllister. This wrapped around the wheelhouse. As you can see this is very distressed. APPROXIMATELY EIGHT F...
Category

1930s Vintage Signs

Materials

Wood

1950s Era Large Metal Letters
Located in Surrey, BC
only an "O" "l" x 2 left Two sets of custom-made metal letters made for the Wilkinson steel plant in Vancouver for a new office in 1950. The company ...
Category

Mid-20th Century Canadian Signs

Materials

Metal

Very Early X-Ray Building Sign
Located in Peekskill, NY
This is one of the best signs I've ever had. It's 10 feet 8 inches long by 19 inches by 5 inches thick. The letters are painted in the negative, just like an X-ray. The letters are "...
Category

Late 19th Century American Industrial Antique Signs

Materials

Tin

Vintage DRUGS Street Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vintage DRUGS street sign with white background and black lettering. Interesting piece of transportation history. No drugs zone, with increased penalties. Probably used close to a school zone...
Category

1970s American Vintage Signs

Materials

Steel

Antique, New and Vintage Signs

Vintage and antique signs are popular collector’s items loved not only for the charm and pops of color they add to a space but also for the unique story each one has to tell. An interesting sign can help set the mood for a room and spark dozens of lively conversations.

Before and during the 18th century, many European peasants and colonists in the Americas couldn’t read, so shopkeepers, in an effort to promote their goods and services, hung trade signs with limited amounts of text.

Indeed, symbols and representational physical objects comprised early-day advertising efforts. In lieu of painted words on a wooden board, trade signs made use of handmade three-dimensional symbols to indicate the function of the shop. The iconic red, white and blue pole could be found outside barbershops, while a figural trade sign mounted to an apothecary’s storefront might be a mortar and pestle sculpted from bronze in order to indicate to passers-by that inside there were apothecary cabinets full of remedies for common ailments and a druggist to carefully dispense them.

As literacy rates improved, signs evolved into rectangular, round or square shapes that featured text. Short and sweet, early iterations were characterized by a mere few words, such as “tavern,” “boarding room” or “apothecary.”

During the 19th century, proprietors endeavored to render their signs more appealing. This meant the introduction of more color, font types and other pictorial representations. After the Civil War ended, logos, branding and advertising became increasingly more important, and the design of signage evolved. Trade signs were still in use during the 20th century, and you will likely find hand-painted tin eyeglasses for an optometrist’s office or an oversize bowling pin that likely had a home in the front window of a bowling alley.

Today, collectors and art aficionados alike collect and display antique and vintage signs. Old signs hearken back to a long-gone era, infusing any interior with warmth and nostalgia.

A vintage sign can help anchor a room — think of decorating with signs as you would arranging any kind of wall art. A large-scale sign in particular can prove a distinguishing feature in a living room or dining room, a focal point so prominent that it might lessen the burden of introducing any additional decorative elements to this particular space. Smaller signs work wonders too — pepper sparsely decorated corners with small colorful signs or add a humorous or graphic element to your gallery-style hang with a small text-based sign or two.

On 1stDibs, find metal, wood and glass antique and vintage signs that span a number of styles, including mid-century modern, industrial and folk art.

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