Shadows of a Forgotten World

When I was in Annapolis I saw some oval plaques with images of trees, eagles, engines, etc. on some of the old buildings. I thought they were something exclusive to Annapolis, but when I returned to my suburb I found a couple of them there and realized it was something worth researching. It turns out that they are fire marks (insurance plaques ) , meaning they indicated that a building was insured against fire. “Beginning in the 1750s, some American insurance companies issued metal fire marks to policyholders to signify that their property was insured against fire damage. The fire marks bore the name and/or symbol of the insurer, and some included the customer’s policy number. The company or agent would then affix the mark to the policyholder’s home or business. For owners the mark served as proof of insurance and a deterrent against arson. For insurance companies the mark served as a form of advertising, and alerted volunteer firefighters that the property was insured,” from the ...

I found a new faux ghost sign on a shop that sells gold, silver, watches, and currency. The name of the shop is Ломбард (Lombard). The signs are in Polish and Ukrainian.  Złoto (Gold) Srebro (Silver) Zegarki (Watches) Гроші (Money) Kantor (Currency exchange) This first example I've seen in Lviv of a faux ghost sign that is made to look as if it has been uncovered from beneath the plaster on the facade  –  look closely around "Kantor"