The painted pub sign, one of the oldest visual art forms in Britain, was designed for the purpose of steering strangers to a welcoming drink. Sadly, those signs are vanishing.

The growing corporate ownership of public houses has led to the standardisation of signs, while signs bearing lettering and no picture are now the fashion among upmarket gastro-pubs. These factors combined with figures compiled by the Cam­paign for Real Ale (CAMRA) showing that an average of 57 pubs shut permanently every month mean the traditional sign is becoming a thing of the past.

“After 2,000 years of history, pub signs are dying and I think it is a shame,” says David Cole of the Inn Sign Society. “When you walk down the road nowadays, you don’t know whether it is a pub, a bank, a café or what it is. They all have the same lettering. It is sad that we are allowing a great tradition to slip away without anyone noticing.”

The Inn Sign Society, which was formed 20 years ago, is hoping to win a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund to establish an online archive of the old signs before they disappear.

Meanwhile, the latest edition of Cornerstone, the monthly magazine for the Society For Protection Of Ancient Buildings, claims that the inn sign is vulnerable because it has no official status or protection.

“Like the pub, the inn sign is classless and central to British culture,” says the magazine.

The pub sign started life with the Romans who used vine leaves to signify a tavern. By the 12th century, the naming of inns and pubs had became common practice and a picture was used to illustrate the name as the majority of the population could not read or write.

Two hundred years later, King Richard II passed an Act making it compulsory for pubs and inns to have a sign (his crest was a White Hart) in order to identify them to the Official Ale Taster and, ever since, those signs have reflected British life.

Before the Reformation, pubs, many of which were attached to monasteries, frequently had religious names such as The Lamb And Flag (the flag was the cross and the lamb holding the cross was a symbol of the church) and The Cross Keys (the sign of St Peter, the gatekeeper to heaven). Later when Henry VIII split with the Catholic church, pubs changed to royal themes such as The Crown.

The most common pub name is still the Red Lion, named after King James VI of Scotland who, when he became King James I of Eng­land and Ireland in 1603, ordered that the heraldic red lion of Scotland be displayed on all buildings of importance, including pubs.

Other inn names told travellers on horseback what facilities were available such as The Black­smith, The Farrier and The Horse And Groom. The Tiger was an upmarket groom in a livery of black and yellow stripes.

Boar’s Head, Baron Of Beef, Shoulder Of Mutton and Haunch Of Venison were all signs advertising particular foods that were served, while references to drink were common too with names like The Barley Mow and The Barley Sheaf (barley being a principal constituent of beer).

The Fox And Hounds was where a hunt met. Any pub called the Cock Inn or the Cock Pit would once have been a venue for cock fighting. Ye Old Fighting Cocks in St Albans (which also claims to be the oldest pub in Britain) was originally the dovecote for St Albans Abbey. After the Dissolution, it was realised that its circular shape made it a perfect venue for cock fighting. Just to confuse things, any pub called the Cock & Bottle has nothing to do with sport. It simply denotes that both bottled and draught beers were available, while the Dog And Duck was an inn that had a pond with a flightless bird (punters bet on which dog could reach it first).

Other names featured the title and crests of landowners who owned the building. They favoured royalty (Queen Victoria) and great warriors such as The Duke Of Wellington and The Marquis Of Granby. The latter was the commander-in-chief of the army during the Seven Years War (1758-1765). He helped retiring officers set up public houses and, in gratitude, they called their pubs after him.

The increasing dominance of corporate chains in the licensing trade has contributed to the disappearance of traditional British pub names and a profusion of Slug And Lettuces, Rat And Parrots and Pitcher And Pianos.

An unwritten law dating from at least Victorian times forbade the naming of a pub after a reigning monarch, though since her death there have been numerous pubs named Victoria, many of which still survive.

The pub of that name in St Werburgh’s, Bristol, however, replaced Queen Victoria on its sign in 2002 with an image of Victoria Beckham, and that has reportedly changed again recently to a picture of Little Britain’s Vicky Pollard.

In the 18th Century, the population became more mobile and a need for coaching inns grew with predictable names such as Coach & Horses or Horse & Groom. Later the advent of steam gave every town its Railway Inn or Station Arms.

There is a story that, in Stoney Stratford, the London coach changed horses at the Bull and the Birmingham coach across the road at the Cock Inn. The passengers from the respective coaches would swap news whilst waiting for the change and it is from this that the phrase “cock and bull story” is said to have originated.

Plenty of cock and bull stories and local legends have found their way onto pub signs. Take, for example, the Drunken Duck at Barngates. The landlady one day found all of her ducks dead in the yard. Unaccustomed to waste, she plucked them ready for cooking. As she finished, the ducks began to revive and a search of the yard revealed a leaking beer barrel surrounded by webbed footprints. She was apparently so contrite that she knitted little jackets until their feathers grew back.

Alternatively, there was the Flying Monk of Malmesbury who claimed his faith was so strong it would enable him to fly. He jumped from the top of the local abbey to demonstrate his faith and…well, the pub was a nice memorial!

It is rare to take time to consider the sign outside the pub in the rush to get inside but few pubs were named by accident. Almost every name has a story behind it and, together, they illustrate the social history of England. With names enduring for centuries it is possible that the sign above the door is as old as the pleasure of drinking itself.

Meanwhile, what has happened to the Wheeltappers Arms? The pub no longer exists – it’s now a hostel – while the sign which celebrated the rail workers who checked the wheels of the steam engines has, like the workers, long disappeared.

The danger is that, unless we make more of an effort to preserve them, so will many more pub signs.

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