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Signs For Sale
Period: 1960s
Period: Late 19th Century
Vintage French Christian Dior Advertising Statue, 1960s
Located in HEVERLEE, BE
Beautiful and intruiging advertising statue for Christian Dior.
This would have been used on a shop counter or to draw attention in a shop windo...
Category
1960s French Art Deco Vintage Signs
Materials
Plaster
Vintage French Christian Dior Advertising Statue, 1960s
Located in HEVERLEE, BE
Beautiful and intruiging advertising statue for Christian Dior.
This would have been used on a shop counter or to draw attention in a shop windo...
Category
1960s French Art Deco Vintage Signs
Materials
Plaster
Double Sided Late 19th c. English Fishmonger's Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
This is a fantastic double sided English fishmongers sign with original paint. I especially love the teeth of this guy. This is folk art at its finest. don't let this one get away!
Category
1890s British Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
Large Antique Terracotta 19th Century Dairy Bowl Kitchen Decoration, C.1880
Located in London, GB
A very large 19th century dairy bowl. c.1880
Terracotta with beautiful green glazed bowl with wonderful ancient stapled repair. Some minor chipping here and there, but a great dec...
Category
Late 19th Century English Industrial Antique Signs
Materials
Terracotta
Nineteenth Century 55 Wood Address Sign
Located in Garnerville, NY
Nineteenth Century '55' wood sign. Old wood relief sign with wonderfully weathered gold and black paint. A nice accent piece or if your address just happens to be 55 Main Street, Any...
Category
Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood, Paint
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
1960 light up three feathers whiskey sign by Schenley
Located in Surrey, BC
A great mcm advertising working whiskey sign light up box . A great piece of advertising in original condition .
Three Feathers Blended Whiskey is a v...
Category
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Signs
Materials
Metal
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
English Wrought Iron Panel Baring the Monogram DC
Located in Wormelow, Herefordshire
An antique English wrought iron panel baring the monogram DC. This exquisite sign has a scrolling handcrafted design; applied swags and floral embellishments are complimented by its ...
Category
Late 19th Century English Georgian Antique Signs
Materials
Metal, Iron, Wrought Iron
Late 19th Century Cigar Store Carved Wooden Indian Tobacconist Trade Sign
Located in Lowestoft, GB
A life size carved pitch pine cigar/tobacconist trade sign/point of sale in the form of an Indian. Often placed outside of a shop, the cigar store Indian became less common in the 20...
Category
Late 19th Century American Antique Signs
Materials
Steel
19th Century Apothecary Mortar & Pestle Countertop Trade Sign or Sale Stimulator
Located in Chapel Hill, NC
Apothecary trade sign or sale stimulator in the form of a mortar and pestle in gilt wood. The mortar of cylindrical waisted form with a central half round band and stepped rings at t...
Category
Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
Oversized Advertising Store Display Scissors
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Brass oversized scissors
probably used for advertising and or store display.
These will add interest to any room, wall, hair salon or fashion fashi...
Category
1960s American Folk Art Vintage Signs
Materials
Brass
Vintage French Christian Dior Advertising Statue, 1960s
Located in HEVERLEE, BE
Beautiful and intriguing advertising statue for Christian Dior.
This would have been used on a shop counter or to draw attention in a shop windo...
Category
1960s French Art Deco Vintage Signs
Materials
Plaster
Manhole Cover Prototype Folk Art, 1960s USA
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Extremely unique wooden sewer cap prototype. Made by by various wooden cubes and blocks as well as letters nailed to the front of the main ply of the cap giving it its design. The ba...
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Wood
Circa 1890 Hardware Store Wood Trade Sign Carved Smaltz Black and Gold Paint
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Exceptional late 19th century hand carved letters with black and Gold paint and black smaltz background. Excellent typography. Great wall art. Simple and bold.
Category
Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
Vintage School Sign, 1960s USA
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Distressed vintage embossed School sign. Reads "SCHOOL" in bold black lettering embossed on a bright yellow background with a black border. Great piece of transportation and cultural...
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Metal
Manhole Cover Prototype Folk Art, 1960s USA
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Extremely unique wooden sewer cap prototype. Made by by various wooden cubes and blocks as well as letters and trim nailed to the front of the main ply of the cap giving it its desig...
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Wood
19th Century Antique Ships Chandler Shop Advertising Sign
Located in Peabody, MA
A relic from Boston’s mercantile history and the seafaring trade. This 19th century shop sign displays a fairly detailed replica of a navigator’s octant (or sextant) and the proprietor’s name and street number...
Category
Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
Monumental Antique American Painted Turned Wood Barber Pole, circa 1875
Located in San Francisco, CA
An uncommon and towering seven-and-a-half-foot tall circa 1875 American painted turned wood barber pole trade sign.
Very impressive in both its rar...
Category
1870s American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood, Paint
“Giant” Scissors, Advertising Store Display
Located in Philadelphia, PA
Cast aluminum oversized scissors
probably used for advertising and or store display.
These will add interest to any room, wall, hair salon or fash...
Category
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Signs
Materials
Aluminum
1960s English Carnival Sign
Located in High Point, NC
1960s carnival art sign from England. It is advertising a cake walk on one side of the sign, and on the back has a charming message "Have a nice Victorian day". Great sign for any co...
Category
1960s English Folk Art Vintage Signs
Materials
Wood
Vintage Hand-Painted No Smoking Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Great vintage hand-painted sign. No smoking and a crossed out cigarette hand-painted on white steel. Good vintage condition.
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Steel
19th c Giant Wooden Advertising Thermometer NY Life Insurance Co "NYLIC"
Located in Savannah, GA
Giant sized forty seven inches tall wooden thermometer made by the Hoehn Company Thermomter Makers, Chambers Street, NYC. constucted of hard wood with a rounded top and beveled edges, it adverrtises NYLIC-New York Life Insurance Co. wanting Bright Young Men- Permanent Pay. Measuring Blood Heat, Summer Heat,Tempe Rate, Freezing and Zero, the glass thermometer...
Category
1890s American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Metal
Vintage Illuminated Nut Crackers
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Large signs plastic nut crackers.
Set of two nut crackers, industrial plastic and illuminated sign from the Bullock department store in L.A.
Category
1960s American Mid-Century Modern Vintage Signs
Materials
Plastic
Recycled Pine Wine Bar Menu, Black Board a Good Handsome Piece
Located in Chillerton, Isle of Wight
Recycled pine wine bar menu, black board
A good handsome piece simply made with 4” old pine and waxed and polished
The attractively bordered board is r...
Category
1960s Mid-Century Modern Vintage Signs
Materials
Pine
19th Century, Apothecary Trade Sign
Located in Nantucket, MA
Figural trade sign in the form of a mortar and pestle, both the mortar and pestle are hand turned and gilded, with strong ring turnings. The top is capped with zinc and still bears i...
Category
Late 19th Century North American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Zinc
Rustic Folk Art Hand Painted Gas Station Sign
Located in Oakland, CA
Vintage handcrafted gas station signage on board. The sign dates to pre 1975 when leaded gasoline was phased out. The state states “No Lead 99.9”, painted in yellow paint on a black ...
Category
1960s American Folk Art Vintage Signs
Materials
Scrap Wood, Paint
19th Century Gold Giltwood Carved Letters William Trade Sign
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Classic 19th century American wood trade sign with chunky hand carved and gold painted letters. Ready to display.
Category
Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
Fair Play 1960s Electro-Magnetic Basketball Scoreboard
By Fair Play
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vintage basketball scoreboard by Fair Play, made in the 1960s. Taken down from a high-school in Ohio. In full working order with controll...
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Aluminum
Antique English Wrought Iron Police Station Sign with Briggs Barrow Mark
Located in Port Chester, NY
An antique English wrought iron police station sign in good original condition. Manufactured at the Briggs Foundry, Barrow, as seen in the bottom right corner. There are holes at eit...
Category
Late 19th Century English Antique Signs
Materials
Wrought Iron
Easel Style Chalkboard
Located in Chicago, IL
Easel style chalkboard for little students and artists. Very fun.
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Signs
Materials
Slate, Metal
Tradesign in the Form of a Brick Storehouse
Located in Greenwich, CT
An advertising device or tradesign in the form of a brick storehouse, with ten arched windows or pigeonholes to display merchandise, constructed as a roofed box mounted on wheels, fo...
Category
Late 19th Century American Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
Action Sports Sign
Located in Chicago, IL
Wrought iron ACTION SPORTS sign.
Category
1960s French Vintage Signs
Materials
Wrought Iron
1960s California Prison Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Unique California state prison sign that reads "KEEP OUT CALIFORNIA STATE PROPERTY". Yellow background with bold black print. Scuffs, scratches and rust gi...
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Steel
Wall Mounted Telephone Sign
Located in Chicago, IL
Wall mounted telephone sign on an iron bracket. Old school and very fun!
Category
1960s Italian Vintage Signs
Materials
Metal
1880s Odd Fellows Lodge Banner from Dakota
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Early 1880s Odd Fellows Lodge all-seeing eye banner from Centerville, Dakota. Excellent hand painting and lettering. Centerville was platted in 1883. Dakota became the states of North and South Dakota in 1889. The area is now part of the Sioux Falls...
Category
1880s American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Silk
Arts and Crafts Copper Milliners Trade Sign, Copper Top Hat
Located in Chillerton, Isle of Wight
Arts and Crafts Copper Milliners Trade Sign. Copper Top Hat
This is an unusual piece, the Top Hat is made in beaten Copper it sits on an old wooden stand
The hat and stand are bo...
Category
Late 19th Century Arts and Crafts Antique Signs
Materials
Copper
Large Weathered Trade Sign "Carriage Shop"
Located in Greenwich, CT
A 12 foot long trade sign displaying the words Carriage Shop on one side and Horse Shoeing on the other. In weathered early hand painted lettering on wood, with molded edging on all ...
Category
1870s American Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
HOVIS, Etched Glass Bakery Advertising Window Sign
Located in Chillerton, Isle of Wight
HOVIS, Etched Glass Bakery Advertising Window Sign
A great piece of social history, this is a window, the old sash type, the glass is etched and ...
Category
Late 19th Century Edwardian Antique Signs
Materials
Art Glass
Elkwood, Late 19th Century American Trade Sign
Located in Nantucket, MA
With carved gilt wood letters with mounted against a blue painted sand ground
American, c. 1890.
Category
Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
19th Century Barber's Pole Hand Carved Hand Painted
Located in San Francisco, CA
19th century barber's pole hand carved hand painted
Antique barber's pole
5.5" diameter x 42" high
The support measures 9" wide x 34" high
Good antique condition
The...
Category
Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
19th Century Cast Iron Shoemaker’s Trade Sign
Located in London, GB
19th century cast iron shoemaker’s trade sign
A highly decorative example of a late 19th century cast iron French shoemakers shop trade sign. Hand crafted from a hand cut iron metal...
Category
1880s French Early Victorian Antique Signs
Materials
Wrought Iron
19th Century French Art Nouveau Verre Églomisé Gilt Trade Shop Sign
Located in Lowestoft, GB
Of striking composition, a reverse painted and gilt trade sign, late 19th century (circa 1890) in age French in origin.
The sign has typical Art Nouveau organic flowing forms and...
Category
1890s French Art Nouveau Antique Signs
Materials
Glass, Hardwood
Long 'Dead End' Highway Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vintage highway sign. Dead End Rd. Over 3 feet long. Cool vintage sign with good subject matter. Reflective material.
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Steel
Blickensderfer Typewriter Tin Sign "A Gift from the 19th to the 20th Century"
Located in Stamford, CT
A Wonderful Blickensderfer Typewriter Advertising Sign " A GIFT from the 19th to the 20th CENTURY " ( circa 1899 ) simply an amazing sign. The tin sign is in a wood frame with the ad...
Category
Late 19th Century American Antique Signs
Materials
Tin
Cast Case Iron Eagle Trade Signs, 1880-1900
Located in Coeur d'Alene, ID
Pair of cast iron Case eagle signs. Depicts the company mascot "Abe" on a globe. Embossed "J.I. Case Threshing Machine Company, Racine, WI, USA." Original s...
Category
1890s American Antique Signs
Materials
Iron
English Victorian Painted Shoemaker's Boot Sign
Located in New York, NY
English Victorian red & blue painted and decorated wood carved shoemaker's boot sign.
Category
Late 19th Century British Victorian Antique Signs
Materials
Metal
19th Century Folk Art Wartime Relationship Commemorative Plaque
Located in London, GB
19th century Folk Art Wartime relationship commemorative plaque
We are proud to offer a rare and unique commemorative wartime relationship plaque...
Category
1880s Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
Painted Wooden Stag/Reindeer
Located in Washington, DC
Painted wooden stag. English. Probably a Tavern or trade sign.
Category
Late 19th Century English Antique Signs
Materials
Wood
19th Century 'Doctor McCracken' Surgeon's Trade Sign
Located in Hamilton, Ontario
Double-sided doctor's medical practice trade sign for 'Dr. McCracken'.
Category
Late 19th Century Antique Signs
Vintage 'Lodging" Highway Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Cool vintage highway sign in cobalt blue reflective metal. Depicts a person sleeping in bed. Sign was used to direct drivers to hotels/motels up ...
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Steel
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
1800s Skeleton Key Locksmith Trade Sign
Located in Peekskill, NY
This is one of the best locksmith trade signs we have offered. It’s early and all handmade in iron with original paint. It's very well done and a wonderful piece of Folk Art.
Category
Late 19th Century Unknown Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Iron
12.5 Foot Tall Vintage Neon Bowling Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Massive 12.5 foot tall metal and neon bowling sign from the 1960s. Sign is red with white letters and white trim. Neon lights are red and illuminate lette...
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Aluminum, Steel
Los Angeles 'DEAD END' Embossed Street Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vintage Los Angeles street sign. Embossed sign, circa 1960s. Reads 'DEAD END.' Tons of patina, good condition.
Category
1960s American Vintage Signs
Materials
Steel
Cast Iron Clock Face Surround from Observatory Clock Tower Double-Sided
Located in Santa Monica, CA
Very cool cast iron clock face surround, observatory time. Double-sided with great paint surface. Substantial heavy duty iron hooks. Lots of potential...
Category
Late 19th Century American Folk Art Antique Signs
Materials
Iron
French Anatomy Sign
Located in Los Angeles, CA
Vintage French sign from a science class. Circa 1960s. Made of metal. Depicting the French word ANATOMIE. 8 free standing letters. Patina and wear to metal. Great piece of wall art t...
Category
1960s French Vintage Signs
Materials
Metal
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
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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