‘Take Courage’ Ghost Sign
A brewery’s ghost sign unintentionally appears to encourage those who look up at it.
Ghost signs, in many cases, are nostalgic hand-painted advertisements on the sides of brick buildings that typically date back to around 1890-1960s.
In the Southwark area of London, just outside Borough Market, is one of the most photographed, Instagram-ready ghost signs in the city. On the wall of an 1807 building, there are just two words: TAKE COURAGE. While this may sound like an uplifting cry of encouragement, it’s actually a ghost sign of a brewery called Courage, only encouraging you to take its beer.
The neighborhood is known to have been a hotspot of breweries for centuries, with the building itself being the former site of Anchor Brewery’s entrance in the 17th century. It was later taken over by Barclay, Perkins & Co., which in turn was taken over by Courage Brewery in 1955, around which the sign seems to date back to.
In 2009, the brewery attempted to revive the slogan only to have it banned by the Advertising Standards Authority for its suggestion that drinking beer boosts confidence.
Know Before You Go
While the location is marked as "permanently closed" on Google Maps, the ghost sign can still be found today.
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