Hoover and Au Grand Quartier, Bourg-sur-Gironde

This wall offers a nice palimpsest, with Hoover's logo covering an ealier advert for Au Grand Quartier, one of Bordeaux's most famous clothes shop. There was certainly a third sign but I didn't manage to identify it.

Founded in 1908 in Ohio, vacuum manufacturer Hoover arrived in France in 1932. This ghost sign painted on a wall managed by advertising agency Bézicot (see here) dates from the mid-1960s though.

Hoover

The Hoover signs covers one for Au Grand Quartier, a clothes shop founded in 1929 by Marcel Castelle. Well known by several generations of people from Bordeaux and the surrounding area, who bought all sorts of good quality garments in this shop located Rue Ste-Catherine, Au Grand Quartier (later shortened to Grand Quartier) closed down in 2012.

Hommes   -   Dames   -   Enfants

Prêts à porter et sur mesure

Au Grand

Quartier

22 à 30 Rue Ste Catherine     Bordeaux

[Gentlemen   -   Ladie   -   Children

Ready-to-wear and made to measure

Au Grand

Quartier

22 to 30 St Catherine's St     Bordeaux]

Location: Rue du 4 Septembre, Bourg-sur-Gironde, Gironde

Brouette Petit-Fils, Bourg-sur-Gironde

A fine sign for Brouette Petit-Fils, a winery famous for its sparkling wine "Crémant de Bordeaux." Their cellars, in a former quarry, are located kilometres away from Bourg, in the hamlet of Pain-de-Sucre. Founded by Paul Joseph Brouette, the company took the name Brouette Petit-Fils when his grand-son, Pierre Brouette succeeded him in 1982. In 2000 it was bought by Jaillance, a leading group specialised in sparkling wine.

Brouette

Petit-Fils

Crémant de Bordeaux

A 2km visitez nos caves

The Brouette sign seen from the upper part of Bourg, built on a cliff overlooking the River Dordogne

Enamel sign for Brouette Petit-Fils in the streets of Bourg

Location: Rue des Chantiers, Bourg-sur-Gironde, Gironde

Bar Restaurant, Bourg-sur-Gironde

[Name of the place]

Bar   Restaurant   Pension de famille   Dancing   Télé. 89

Location: Rue Valentin Bernard, Bourg-sur-Gironde, Gironde

Marcel Borde, Bourg-sur-Gironde

A lovely late 19th-early 20th century sign for ironmonger Marcel Borde.

This is one of several painted signs that can still be seen while strolling through the streets of Bourg-sur-Gironde, a lovely little town on the bank of the River Dordogne, 40 km north of Bordeaux.

Marcel Borde

Aciers. Fers. Fontes    || Quincaillerie. Ferronnerie

Spécialités pour        ||     Articles de ménage   

Carrossiers & tonneliers ||    Fils de fer. Grillages         

Marcel

Aciers. Fers. Fontes [Steel. Iron. Cast Iron]

Spécialités pour [Specialist Work For]

Carrossiers & tonneliers [Panel Beaters & Coopers]

Borde

Quincaillerie. Ferronnerie [Ironmonger. Ironwork]

Articles de ménage [Household Goods]

Fils de fer. Grillages [Wires. Wire Fences]

Location: Rue Valentin Bernard, Bourg-sur-Gironde, Gironde

Le Mont St Michel, Pons

A lovely painted sign for Le Mont Saint Michel, a workwear manufacturer founded in 1913. The company's logo consists of a sylized view of the famous rocky islet off the coast of Normandy, on which rises the abbey dedicated to St Michel.

Le Mont St Michel

Signature de garantie: Ariès

Bleus de [travail]

Blue [-jeans]

Location: Cours d'Alsace-Lorraine, Pons, Charente-Maritime

Kina Lilet and Vichy Célestins, Pouillac

The wall of this house, next to the former N10 trunk road in France, was painted on many occasions. Nowadays the only ghost signs clearly legible are those for two very different kinds of drinks.

The first one, on the left, is for Kina Lilet. For some information about the history of this fortified wine, check the post about the Kina Lilet ghost sign in Saint-Aubin-de-Blaye.

Kina
Lilet

On the right is a ghost sign for Vichy Célestins. For some information about this mineral water, check the post about the Vichy Célestins ghost sign, also in Saint-Aubin-de-Blaye.

Vichy
Célestins

Unfortunately I haven't managed to identify the ghost sign that covered the central part of the wall.

Location: former N10, Pouillac, Charente-Maritime

Valentine, Montlieu-la-Garde

When the colours of this ghost sign for the Valentine brand of paint were still vivid, few people travelling southwards along the N10 trunk road through Montlieu-la-Garde would have missed it.

For a brief history of Valentine paint, please see the earlier post about the Valentine ghost sign in Saintes.

The sign writer cleverly positioned the painter to the right of the window, making it look as if he were painting the only area that was not white yet.

Valentine
Les belles
peintures

The painter was originally created by Charles Loupot in the 1920s. Even if his design was later modified, he remained the symbol of Valentine until the 1980s.

Underneath the ghost sign are the names of the two companies that managed successively this advertising space. The original one was the COFRAP. The second company, , which could be reached by calling TRO 15 57, was the AGPP (for Agence Générale de Presse et de Publicité). TRO stood for Trocadéro, a telephone exchange in Paris.

COFRAP / AGPP
TRO. 15.57.

Location: Avenue de la République, Montlieu-la-Garde, Charente-Maritime

Suze, Montlieu-la-Garde

The Suze ghost sign with its characteristic yellow background is a great French classic. For some information about this aperitif whose distinctive taste comes from the gentian roots used in its preparation, check the post about the Suze sign in Saintes.

Originally this sign would have been seen every day by hundreds (and thousands during the holiday exodus) of people driving south on the former Nationale 10, the main road between Paris, Bordeaux and the Spanish border. Many would even have had time to look at it for what would have seemed ages. Indeed Montlieu-la-Garde was notorious for its endless traffic jams caused by the traffic lights at the junction with the Départementale 730 a couple of hundred metres further south. Nowadays a bypass avoids the small town and its many ghost signs.

Suze
Gentiane

This Suze sign was certainly painted over an earlier sign. To the left of Suze is the logo of the advertising company that managed the space on this wall.

Location: Avenue de la République, Montlieu-la-Garde, Charente-Maritime

Vittel, Montlieu-la-Garde

Not far from yesterday's ghost signs for beer and vermouth is another one for a completely different drink, more suitable for drivers: Vittel. It looks as if other products were advertised on this wall at some point but the only one I could identify is for this brand of mineral water from the namesake spa town in the Vosges region, in northeastern France.

Originally the Vittel sign would certainly have included the mentions "Grande source" (the name of Vittel's main spring) above and "La santé en bouteille" ("Health in a bottle") below, both in white letters on a blue background. These would have contrasted with the red letters of "Vittel" on a white background.

Location: former RN10, Montlieu-la-Garde, Charente-Maritime

Kronenbourg and Vermouth Noilly Prat, Montlieu-la-Garde

The grange on which yesterday's ghost sign can be seen has more to offer than just lubricants. Indeed the whole front of the building facing the former route of the Nationale 10 was used for advertising.

There might have been other products or services advertised on this wall but nowadays it is the names of two alcoholic drinks that stand out.

On the left is a ghost sign for Kronenbourg. Some information about this beer was posted earlier: see Kronenbourg, Saint-André-de-Cubzac.

And on the right is a better-preserved sign for the Noilly Prat. To find out more about this particular brand of vermouth, check this earlier post: Vermouth Noilly Prat, Saint-André-de-Cubzac

Part of another advert can be seen on the left of the picture below but I haven't managed to identify it.

Location: former RN10, Montlieu-la-Garde, Charente-Maritime

Huile Renault, Montlieu-la-Garde

This is undoubtedly one of the most colourful signs I've ever come across. Shame the upper part is hidden by a modern sign!

Actually there are two versions of the advert for Renault's motor oil on this wall.

The Société Anonyme des Huiles Renault was founded in 1911 by car manufacturer Louis Renault. It offered a wide range of lubricants not only for motor vehicles but also for boats and planes.

This is one of many ghost signs that can still be seen along the former Route Nationale 10 (N10), the trunk road that ran from Paris to Hendaye on the Spanish border, via Bordeaux. However in order to see them, one has to leave the many by-passes and newer dual carriageway sections of the road and follow the old route through the centre of villages.

Location: former RN10, Montlieu-la-Garde, Charente-Maritime

E. Blomme, Jonzac

Thanks to the lovely colours of the façade, this ghost sign painted in the 1960s or 1970s on Mr Blomme's shop is hard to miss.

E. Blomme

Something else was previously written above Mr Blomme's name but I did not manage to decipher it.

Teinture & Nettoyage
[Dyeing & Cleaning]

Location: Rue des Carmes, Jonzac, Charente-Maritime / Pictures taken in April 2013

A la Belle Botte, Jonzac

On one of the houses built on the banks of the River Seugne in the small town of Jonzac in the south of the Charente-Maritime département is a double ghost sign.

A couple of letters from the original sign, in black, can still be seen on the façade but that is not enough to be able to identify the business behind it.
The more recent sign, wich is certainly nearly one century old, advertised a shoe shop by the rather attractive name A la Belle Botte.

A la Belle Botte

[At the Beautiful Boot]

Location: Rue des Carmes, Jonzac, Charente-Maritime / Pcitures taken in April 2013

Bois du nord et du pays, Etauliers

To conclude, temporarily, this series of ghost signs found along the former Nationale 137 in southwestern France, here is one I had missed last year but was able to photograph last week. It can be found on what was certainly the workshop of wood merchant Marcel Dupuy.

Dupuy sold wood (bois) produced both locally (du pays) and further north (du nord). It can be assumed that 'north' referred not so much to northern France but to Scandinavia, a region with a strong wood industry. Sweden in particular began developing its timber and wood industry in the 19th century. Since then the sector has been a major source of export earnings.

Bois du nord
et du pays
Marcel Dupuy

Location: D 137, Etauliers, Gironde / Pictures taken in April 2013

Boulangerie, Etauliers

The bakery may not longer be there but its ghost sign, which includes on each side drawings of large round loaves, still adorns this building.

Boulangerie [Bakery]

There are two versions of this boulangerie ghost sign, the more recent one covering the earlier one. Traces of some more words can be seen next to the loaves but not enough to be able to decipher what was written there.

Location: D 137, Etauliers, Gironde / Pictures taken in May 2012

Foire Internationale de Bordeaux, Saint-Aubin-de-Blaye

Like yesterday, we are looking at a palimpsest. The most recent, and obvious, sign promoted the Foire Internationale de Bordeaux (Bordeaux International Fair).

Even though this fair held every year around Ascension Day became 'international' only in 1921, its origins go back to 1214, the year John, King of England and Duke of Aquitaine, granted the city the power to organize a wine fair. This privilege was confirmed and extended by successive rulers, be they English or French. The fair, which had been taking place traditionally in the medieval part of the city, was held between 1853 and 1968 on Place des Quinconces, at 12 hectares one of the largest city squares in Europe. However in the 1960s, as part of the modernisation plans of the city designed by the team of mayor Jacques Chaban-Delmas, the decision was taken to transfer the fair to Bordeaux-Lac, an area seven kilometres to the north of the city centre. The move was quite controversial at the time but it made it possible to increase the size of the fair and to accomodate the growing number of visitors coming by car. In 1969 the Foire Internationale de Bordeaux opened in the brand new hall of the Parc des Expositions. When it opened, this impressive building, 847 m long and with a surface area of 50,400 square metres, was the largest exhibition hall in Europe. Nowadays the international fair is only one of many events that take place throughout the year in the Parc des Expositions.

Was this sign painted before or after the move to Bordeaux-Lac? This is hard to say but should it have been painted in 1969 or later, one might have expected a bolder design, matching the modern image projected by the design of the new exhibition hall.

Of the earlier ghost sign written with very high letters, only a few of these can been seen in the lower part of the wall. The upper part of the word was covered by "Bordeaux" and, to make things more difficult, part of it disappeared when a small window was opened through the wall.

Foire
Internationale de
Bordeaux / L..on [Lafon?]

This wall was rented by Avenir Publicité, one of France's leading advertising agencies.

Location: D 137, lieu-dit Roubisque, Saint-Aubin-de-Blaye, Gironde / Pictures taken in May 2012

Cognac Martell, Saint-Aubin-de-Blaye

Here is a real palimpsest and identifying the different ghost signs was made even trickier when part of this building was demolished. Indeed it extended originally further towards the right (the lower part of the wall can still be seen).

The easiest sign to read, with white letters on a blue background, is for Martell, a brand of Cognac. This Cognac house was founded in 1715 by Jean Martell, a native from Jersey. This makes it one of the oldest ones. It is also one of the largest and, historically, the main competitor of Hennessy.

Cuisines, salles d'eau modernes Cognac Martell St Raphaël

Also visible against the blue background are the words "cuisines, salles d'eau modernes" ("Modern kitchens and bathrooms"). Whether this was for a specific brand or a store remains unknown. Someone may be able to identify what was certainly the logo, a slightly tilting square, to the left of "cuisines."

The part painted in black on the left is equally a mystery.

Less of a problem to identify is a ghost sign for another French alcohol, St Raphaël. Only "S^t" can still be seen but the style of the letters is characteristic enough to recognise this cinchona-based aperitif.

Finally there was another sign, now to the extreme right, but most of it disappeared when part of the wall was demolished.

Location: D 137, Saint-Aubin-de-Blaye, Gironde / Pictures taken in May 2012

Kina Lilet, Saint-Aubin-de-Blaye

Elaborated c. 1887, and launched in 1895 (the delay being due to the phylloxera "plague" that decimated the vineyards of the Bordeaux region in the 1870s-1880s) Kina-Lillet rapidly became the leading product of Maison Lillet, a wine and spirit trading business founded by Raymond and Paul Lillet in 1872 in Podensac, a small town on the River Garonne 30 km south of Bordeaux. The demand for fortified wine was growing rapidly at the time and the Lillet brothers came up with a recipe that combined 15% liqueur, itself a mix of bark from the Peruvian cinchona (the tree the bark came from was believed to be called kina-kina in Quechua, hence the name of the new beverage), peels of sweet and bitter oranges from Spain and of green oranges from Haiti, and brandy, with 85% white wine from the Sauternes area.

The fame, and sales, of Kina-Lillet rose rapidly thanks to its pleasant refreshing taste and to the successful advertising and marketing campaigns that emphasized the high quality of wines used in its preparation. After a few years the two brothers decided to concentrate solely on their aperitif and stopped acting as agents for other chateaux and distillers. After the Second World War, contrary to many of its competitors, Lillet avoided decline by crossing the Atlantic and conquering the US market, in particularly with Lillet Rouge, a version of the drink prepared with red instead of white wine and developed especially for US customers in 1962.

Between 1986 and 1990 the recipe was slightly altered to cater for changing tastes. As a result Lillet is now less sweet and less bitter than it used to be.

'Kina-Lilet', 'Kina-Lillet', 'Lilet' or 'Lillet'? These are all the same. 'Kina' featured on the bottles sold in France and continental Europe. It was dropped at some point in the 1960s or 1970s. Because of customs regulations the word was never printed on the labels of bottles heading towards the UK or the US. With regards to the spelling of the name, it should always have been 'Lillet', as this was the surname of the two brothers. However these wanted people to pronounce it properly ([li'le] and not [li.jɛ]). Consequently they allowed advertising agencies and sign painters to spell it with only one 'l' if they thought it would be more appropriate. This explains why ghost signs with both spellings can be found around France.

Kina-Lilet was not the first ghost sign painted on this wall. Even if only two letters of the earlier sign can still be seen to the left of 'Kina-Lilet', it is easy to recognise this was a ghost sign for Dubonnet, one of Lillet's main competitors.

Dubonnet /

Kina Lilet

Location: D 137, Saint-Aubin-de-Blaye, Gironde / Pictures taken in May 2012