In the course of the text I have indicated sources of information, and have acknowledged help from several good friends. I wish here in an especial manner to thank Mr. Henry B. Wheatley, F.S.A. As I am indebted to him for an introduction to this volume, it would perhaps not be becoming to dwell over-much on the merits of his great work, ‘London Past and Present,’ based on Peter Cunningham’s Handbook; I find myself constantly referring to it, and always with advantage. Lord Tennyson has kindly allowed me to quote four lines dictated by his illustrious father, which have not before appeared in print. The illustrations I venture to commend, for few of them are the work of my hand. They have at least one great merit, that of being scrupulously accurate. Allusion is made in the text to Mr. Tarbolton’s valuable contribution. There is a fine drawing by Mr. F. E. Cox; while Mr. E. M. Cox contributes a whole series, the merits of which speak for themselves. The Three Kings, the Bell, and the Boar’s Head may be named as specimens. Mr. Fletcher did the charming little sketch of an inscription formerly over the entrance to Bagnigge Wells, with its grotesque head; and the editors of the _Strand Magazine_ and the _Builder_ have allowed me the use of blocks from their respective publications. In conclusion, let me express a hope that the kind reader will not class this volume in the category of ‘books which are no books,’ as Charles Lamb puts it, or even as one ‘which no gentleman’s library should be without,’ but that he will find here some useful and curious information, put together in a form sufficiently agreeable to make him wish for more. [Illustration] [Illustration] CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. PAGE HUMAN SIGNS 1 CHAPTER II. THREE KINGS--ASTRONOMICAL SIGNS 26 CHAPTER III. ANIMALS REAL AND IMAGINARY 46 CHAPTER IV. ANIMALS REAL AND IMAGINARY (_continued_) 67 CHAPTER V. BIRDS AND OTHER SCULPTURED SIGNS 89 CHAPTER VI. VARIOUS CRESTS AND COATS OF ARMS 121 CHAPTER VII. MISCELLANEOUS SIGNS, DATES, AND INSCRIPTIONS, ETC. 156 CHAPTER VIII. A FEW SUBURBAN SPAS 180 CHAPTER IX. TWO OLD CITY MANSIONS 200 [Illustration] [Illustration] LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE FISH SHOP IN CHEYNE WALK _frontispiece_