You may have walked past it hundreds of times without ever noticing it being there.
But tucked along a Quayside side street is a historical sign that pays tribute to Newcastle's shipping past.
The historical relic features on the side of Lui's Italian restaurant on the corner of King Street and details the passenger and cargo routes between Newcastle and London, as well as host of continental ports, which operated from 1904 and 1976. Featuring eye-catching gold lettering on a black signboard the sign informs us the building was once the offices of the Tyne Tees Steam Shipping Company which ran the routes.
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The original sign was removed two decades ago to be preserved by Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums at Beamish and since then Newcastle City Council has replaced it with replicas. And now the council has unveiled its latest copy of the sign as it invests in the city's history.
A council spokeswoman said: "The sign which has been replaced was a replica of the original which was taken down around 20 years ago and is in the care of Tyne and Wear Archives and Museums at Beamish. The council commissioned a replica of the decayed sign due to its popular heritage as a feature of the Quayside.
"This replica had badly worn, therefore, the council chose to have a new replacement produced by Ashley Willerton, a renowned local heritage sign writer."
The sign bears the words: "Tyne -Tees Steam Shipping Company Limited. Regular LNER services between Newcastle Sunderland and London, Antwerp, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, Dordrecht, Hamburg, Bremen, Ghent and Northern French Ports. Also Middlesbrough and Bremen Hamburg."
Daniel Bernardelli, 24, who owns Lui's restaurant, which was formerly named Sabas, said he was proud his business featured a reminder of when Newcastle was a booming shipping centre.
He said: "The last time they renewed the sign they tried to do it like the original, but I was talking to the sign writer this time and they said they were trying to make it a bit more modern so you can see it and it is going to last longer. I think it looks much better.
"People will be able to sit in the outdoor area and look at the sign. It is nice for the council to do something for the buildings on the Quayside."
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