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Monkton Malc
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« on: March 06, 2012, 19:28:25 PM » |
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Fire insurance plaques were normally made from lead or copper and had the mark of the insurance company embossed on them. They were placed on the front of buildings as a guide to the insurance company's fire brigade that your property was insured.
There are some who say that if the fire brigade turned up and you didn't have the plaque on your house, they went back home and left the burning building for the fire brigade of that insurance company.
The one that I have pictured now hangs inside the house it was originally fitted to and is the mark of the Sun Fire Office (founded in 1706).
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John
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« Reply #1 on: March 06, 2012, 20:34:17 PM » |
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There are a few around in Canterbury and the surrounds that I'll try to take pictures of when I get the chance. Some might be fakes of course, I'm not clever enough to spot the difference. One point springs to mind - were they made from lead so that if the plaque melted in a fire, the insurance company could dispute the claim?  |
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Man of Kent1
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« Reply #2 on: March 06, 2012, 23:11:50 PM » |
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Good point about the 'disappearing plaques', John! When I can work out how to get pics onto the site (it's always a steep learning curve for me!) I've got a couple of Canterbury plaques to show.
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NicG
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« Reply #3 on: March 19, 2012, 22:26:39 PM » |
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here's a few I spotted in Canterbury today -
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Kevsussex
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« Reply #4 on: March 20, 2012, 19:38:06 PM » |
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This is the Sun Insurance certificate for James Cook of Seaford dated 1798.
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John
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« Reply #5 on: May 25, 2012, 19:45:49 PM » |
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On 'The Captains House', Whitstable High Street..
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John
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« Reply #6 on: May 29, 2012, 08:37:31 AM » |
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Is it a copy? Is it a real one that's been rescued? An example of how these things are used to decorate modern houses..
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Monkton Malc
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« Reply #7 on: May 29, 2012, 14:27:47 PM » |
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It looks like a copy to me as it has the same number on it as the one in the previous picture..
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John
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« Reply #8 on: May 29, 2012, 15:25:14 PM » |
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Well spotted!
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John
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« Reply #9 on: June 17, 2012, 11:17:34 AM » |
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A different Company at last - Norwich fire mark on a building in Whitstable..
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Man of Kent1
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« Reply #10 on: June 17, 2012, 14:06:49 PM » |
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"Always Look Up!" - well spotted, John!
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John
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« Reply #11 on: June 18, 2012, 09:01:20 AM » |
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Yet another Company fire mark, this time on a cottage on St. Stephen's Hill, Canterbury..
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Longpockets
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« Reply #12 on: June 18, 2012, 19:29:14 PM » |
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Yet another Company fire mark, this time on a cottage on St. Stephen's Hill, Canterbury..
Would that one be Phoenix? |
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By the time you make ends meet, the've moved the ends.
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Monkton Malc
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« Reply #13 on: June 18, 2012, 19:34:24 PM » |
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It appears to say "Phonix". Maybe it's a cheap ebay copy |
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John
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« Reply #14 on: June 18, 2012, 19:39:40 PM » |
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The Phonix (not Phoenix) is generally reckoned to be the pioneer company of fire insurance in 1680.
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