Pub Sign Photo Study – The Swan With Two Nicks – Dunham Massey
@arthurchappell (44941)
Preston, England
March 12, 2016 2:43am CST
There are quite a few pubs called The Swan With Two ‘Necks’, suggesting a mutant swan caught up in a nuclear waste leak, but all such pubs actually get the name slightly wrong as the correct word is ‘Nicks’ not necks. The pub at Little Bollington, Dunham Massey, in Cheshire is a rare example of a pub that gets the name and accompanying sign right.
Swans in Britain are regarded as property of the royal family, and as there are wild swans flying in frequently, officially tagged swans used to be marked with a ‘nick’, a slight cutting impression to the beak as a traditional warning to poachers. The marking was once carried out at an annual swan catching or (swan-upping ceremony). It is in fact illegal for non-royals to eat swans even at Christmas. Nowadays tagging is used instead of beak scarring.
Royal swans were marked with one beak-nick, but there was also a special allowance for royally approved Vinters, (or wine producers) in the Royal Society Of Vinters, and for the Dyers Society. Swans belonging to these societies had beaks marked with two nicks instead of one.
The pub in Little Bollington may once have been a provider of wines produced by royal vinters, hence its hold to the traditional name.
Arthur Chappell
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8 responses
@arthurchappell (44941)
• Preston, England
12 Mar 16
@Ronrybs I have been studying inn signs for a a good few years now - probably my biggest hobby at present - I have quite a few books on the subject and I'm in the Inn Sign Society too, hoping to get to their AGM in Leicerster in June.
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@Ronrybs (21492)
• London, England
12 Mar 16
@arthurchappell As long as it is taking place at an inn!
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@arthurchappell (44941)
• Preston, England
12 Mar 16
@Ronrybs actually at a brewery with an attached inn - The Belvoir Brewery Alehouse
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@owlwings (43897)
• Cambridge, England
12 Mar 16
It is only the swans caught on the Thames which are marked. The Crown claims all swans which are unmarked (anywhere in the UK) and the Vintners and Dyers Companies presumably are allowed to claim (and mark) any that they catch at Swan Upping.
These days, swans are marked by one ring on the leg (for Royal swans) and by two rings (for the Vintners and Dyers Companies). This only applies to Mute Swans. The only other people who are allowed to eat (mute) swan are the Fellows of St John's College, Cambridge, which they do on the 25th June each year.
Other species of swan are protected species in the UK.
Interestingly, there is only one pub with a Swan name (The White Swan) in the City of Cambridge (though we used to have a 'Two Swans' and a 'Three Swans' and there are several White Swans in the villages around).
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@arthurchappell (44941)
• Preston, England
12 Mar 16
thanks for the clarification @owlwings
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@arthurchappell (44941)
• Preston, England
12 Mar 16
@LadyDuck they are legally allowed to though whether they actually do is unclear - seems rather horribly decadent to do it, though I expect Swan tastes similar to turkey or other large poultry game birds
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@LadyDuck (502798)
• Italy
12 Mar 16
@arthurchappell I wonder if they have white meat (as turkey) or red meat (like ducks).
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@Jessicalynnt (50523)
• Centralia, Missouri
12 Mar 16
I wondered what a nick on a swan was, glad to hear they dont do that anymore
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@JohnRoberts (109841)
• Los Angeles, California
12 Mar 16
You could put together a photo book of pub signs and the stories behind them.
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@arthurchappell (44941)
• Preston, England
12 Mar 16
I am considering that but I want a better readership than most photobook vanity services can offer
@teamfreak16 (43655)
• Denver, Colorado
12 Mar 16
Interesting. You really do learn something new every day.
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