16 May 2025

The Boyd is Back in Town

An exterior wall with a wooden lattice structure for mounting a billboard visible. In the absence of the billboard, a fading hand-painted sign advertising Boyd Pianos is visible. Photo via History of Stoke Newington.
The Boyds Pianos palimpsest has been revealed once again in Northeast London, but for how long?

This ghost sign for Boyd Pianos has been time-capsuled by a billboard for 13 years but was revealed again this week. How long it will remain visible is unknown, so catch it while you can.

The following is the narrative text about the sign from its entry in the ‘Entertaining the City’ chapter of Ghost Signs: A London Story.

Boyd Pianos

Boyd, or Boyds of London, manufactured pianos from the end of the nineteenth century until at least the 1930s. It had a strong presence in east London, and advertised on the cover of the official West Ham United handbook from 1904 until 1915. This sign has seen at least two iterations of Boyd’s flourished logotype, now in palimpsest. The most recent of these was painted by Silversigns, a local firm founded by signwriter Henry Silverwood in the 1870s, although this was probably painted by his sons, who followed him into the trade.

This sign has had a turbulent recent history. At the time of writing it is hidden beneath a billboard, but it was revealed twice between 2007 and 2012. In 2010 it was partly pasted over by street artist Specter with his ‘If I Saw You in Heaven’ series. Responding to criticism of his actions the artist stated that:

“As an artist every wall in the public sphere is fair game. I go to great lengths scouting locations for my work and often look for hand-painted signs and walls to revive in the collective eye with my hand-painted installations. I have absolutely no remorse for any placement of my work.

“I chose that spot for a reason. I like to involve my pieces in a dialogue with their surroundings. The art is not just my painting, it is the entire environment, the interaction of all parts.

“I identify very strongly with these old signs and feel that my additions are just part of the evolving cycle of their lives. My incorporations are changes to their ephemeral existence, often highlighting their under-appreciated being.”

The temporary nature of Specter’s work meant that no lasting damage was done to the sign and it is once again lying beneath a billboard, waiting for its next reveal.

Location

Shacklewell Lane E8 (junction with Stoke Newington Road)

Streetviews: 2024 with billboard and 2011 with sign visible

Transcription

Boyd Pianos

Awarded five gold medals

Supplied for cash or by deferred payments

All makes of pianos tuned & repaired

Estimates free

Box office for all theatres

Silversigns, Buckingham Rd, N1

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