13 Jul 2018

Los Angeles’ Reverse Palimpsest

This ‘reverse’ ghost sign was recently revealed in Los Angeles and provides a third example of concrete setting and holding back the paint that once covered the wall of an adjoining building. (See two more examples posted previously here and here.)

Most visible are the large lower-case letters that spell ‘ella’. It isn’t clear whether there was any more preceding this, although the alignment of the other sign suggests that the line is complete with just these four letters. That other sign clearly features a top line starting ‘PRODU…’ and ending ‘…CHAM’. The next line also starts with a (much bigger) P, but is otherwise difficult to decipher. There’s then a line further up that starts with what looks like ‘MA…’

Moving down, it looks like the word ‘WHISKEY’ runs above the red graffiti, but then there is much smaller copy running through the middle of that from another sign. Lee Littlewood has squared it up but this hasn’t made a huge difference to what is legible.

If anyone recognises the lettering from other signs, or can do better than me with what is shown here then please write in, or submit a comment below. And if anyone knows who took the original photo then let me know so that I can give a credit. It popped up in either my Facebook or Instagram feed, but I neglected to make a note of where from, so apologies for that.

Once again, this is a rare find as a reverse ghost sign, and even more special for its palimpsest features.

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