In 1742 Samuel Whitbread went into partnership and bought a small brewery in Bricklane, Spitalfields (London). By 1760 Samuel had bought out his partner and by the 1780s he was running the largest brewery in the world. Throughout the 19th and 20th centuries Whitbread & Co Ltd was firmly established as one of Britian's main breweries and by the mid-20th century was Britian's third largest brewer. 

 

Enamel advertising for Whitbread & Co is scarce - their beers were primarily sold through pubs and enamel signage was generally produced for use outside of shops or similar. This particular sign was produced in Brussels, Belgium in 1938 (marked in the lower corners) - although I can't find any documentaiton of it, presumably Whitbread's beers were bottled / canned and sold on the continent (interesting that there was a demand for British beer in Belgium!). The sign's simplified Oast House graphics, red and blue colourway and bold lettering makes for a striking and unusual piece of signage. 

 

As is typical with European pieces of the period, this sign has rounded corners and a small (1.5cm) return on the edges. Orignally it would've had corner tabs with mounting holes so the sign could be secured without damaging the main face - these tabs have been lost to time. The sign would be best sat, rather than hung, though it could be secured with screws against the bottom and top edges (or new holes could be drilled into the corners, though with the risk of the enamel splintering I wouldn't recommend this). 

Aside from the missing corner tabs, this sign has survived in generally good condition - there's one patch of enamel loss towards the middle and some nibbling around the outer edges. Generally the piece remains bright and the colours vibrant. 

 

The sign measures 80cm wide x 45cm high x 1.5cm deep.

 

S/N: #0836