Another ghostsign – Benjamin, Shepherd Market, Mayfair

You probably think all I look for and write about about these days is ghost signs. Well, that's not true – I've got a folder fit to bursting with mosaics, ironwork, etched glass, architecture from all eras, parks, gardens, and lots more that I just haven't the time to collate. 

It's just that when I spot a faded sign on a wall I stand there scribbling notes that, when I look at them later, are almost undecipherable (just like the sign!), hence I do the research for these asap, while it's all fresh in my mind. This is exactly what happened yesterday when I was walking around Shepherd Market in Mayfair, planning an idea for a guided walk in the area. 

I'm surprised I haven't written about this sign before, or indeed this enclave of delightful little streets which still has that village feel. It's not as if I have only just noticed it. I rather assumed, with it being so obvious that someone else had written it up already, but that doesn't appear so. 

The sign sits above the corner shop, today No.34 Shepherd Market. However, back in the day this was No.8 Market Street, as is clearly shown by the hand-painted street sign. 

N. BENJAMIN / TRUNKS & BAGS for all CLIMATES. 

There is also some over-painting, mostly in the secondary line, so the name and the product/service could be from two different eras. 

In 1910 Edwin Alexander Atkins, trunkmaker, was at this address and this ties in perfectly with the products offered, but the name is wrong. He also had another shop opposite at No.10 selling boots (sort of where I took this photo from)

The sign is evidently for Nathaniel Benjamin, portmanteau dealer, who, in the same year, was next door to the boot shop at No.12. Tho why Atkins would want the name of his immediate competitor advertised on his own building is beyond me. Perhaps these men were related. Or perhaps Atkins offered smaller bags whist Benjamin offered larger ocean-going luggage for those Grand Tour experiences and the two companies bounced off each other? 

H. V. Morton mentions this shop in his wonderfully engaging book Ghosts of London first published in Nov 1939:

I'll leave it there for now. I'll add more info as and when I find it. As ever, any further info welcome.