Leaving his mark

 
One of the least noticed loggerheads-sets is this one, which is in the apex of The Old Bank Buildings in Shrewsbury's Barker Street. They were probably erected in the 1930s when Arthur Ward, the Borough Surveyor, drove through the plans to widen the road at this point, resulting in new frontages. 

You could call them 'post Arts & Crafts' in style if you wanted to.  (Ward was no philistine, so he ensured the new-build was sensitive).
Ward was also very proud of the town, so (it's thought) he liked to leave a set of loggerheads here and there!

(Credit for the information for this post to: Phil Scoggins' article in the Civic Society's Newsletter of March 2020)

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Freemen loggerheads

 
This corner-detail of a lovely piece of modern stained-glass (the St Benedict Window) in Shrewsbury Abbey reminds us that the sponsors of the window were The Gild (sic) of Freemen of Shrewsbury.  As you'd expect, their badge carries the loggerheads.

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Antique road sign - with odd yellows

It seems rather bizarre to realise that this shiny road sign in Shrewsbury is already an antique.  Like thousands of others in the area, it shows the arms of Shrewsbury & Atcham Borough Council - which no longer exists. It was abolished in 2009, and its powers were split between Shropshire County and the new Shrewsbury Town Council.  People mistakenly believe that the bridge in the picture is one of Shrewsbury's bridges, but, no, it's Atcham Bridge.

Of course, it would cost a fortune to replace all the road signs, so they will stay up until they decay, one supposes.

By the way, I have never been able to work out if the yellow markings are just a case of poor, misaligned printing or a deliberate attempt at a 'modern design' in scrolling.  Does anyone know?

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