sign post

Freestanding cast-iron road/placename sign, erected c. 1940, comprising rectangular sign having rounded edges, with black lettering on white background and having black border. Harp emblem to centre set between Irish and English versions of Ardagh town name. Mounted on metal post. Situated on the eastern side of Ardagh on a grass verge adjacent to road.

A notable example of early twentieth-century road furniture, this road/placename sign has a simplicity and clarity of design typical of its time. Its functional nature is enhanced and emphasised by casting using capital letters in a clear simple font without serifs. Its simplicity and relative patina of age create an appropriately discreet piece of street furniture for this heritage village. The inclusion of the harp, the national emblem, along with the Irish version of the town name serves to reinforce a national Irish identity. These cast-iron street/placename signs were once a ubiquitous feature of the Irish countryside but are now becoming very rare survivals on account of modern replacement, making this example an increasingly rare survival. It is one of a number of early surviving signs of this type in the Ardagh area, but a rare surviving example of its type in County Longford.