Vintage French roadside
signs finally go in
the right direction
Enthusiast Nicolas Weber restores and preserves historic Michelin stone signs across Alsace for free
Nicolas Weber has been restoring the signs for seven years
Nicolas Weber
France’s old, stone Michelin road signs are slowly being restored – for free – by a 25-year-old hobbyist.
Nicolas Weber’s interest in vintage signage was sparked by childhood walks with his grandmother in Gresswiller (Bas-Rhin).
He has become something of an expert in stone panels manufactured from the 1930s until 1971 by Michelin, which indicated directions or announced the names of communes. They are increasingly rare today, having largely been replaced by metal signage.
For seven years now, Mr Weber has been contacting towns in Alsace where a Michelin sign has been spotted and restoring them for free. The next panels to be tidied up are in Schiltigheim and Scherwiller.
Read more: French roadside history being lost, one sign at a time
Saving Alsace's Michelin signs
“Some of these panels are over 70 years old, they've seen the exhaust fumes from the Citroën 2CV,” said Mr Weber.
“Most of them are still in very good condition, since the plaque in the centre, made of enamelled lava, is still solid. I repaint the rough concrete outline in white, and that makes them shine again.
“As I like to wander around Alsace, I have always had fun spotting them and referencing them on a map. It was only when I realised they were becoming obsolete that I decided to do something to preserve them.”
Read more: Do you know the meaning of this rare French road sign?
Post-war changes
It was during World War Two that many signs in Alsace disappeared or deteriorated and have since been replaced. Local authorities at the time did not think to preserve them for their historical importance.
However, around 70 Michelin panels, found abandoned in a wood near Colmar, have been moved to the Conservatoire des Transports museum in Wissembourg, in the north of Bas-Rhin, and are now on public display.
You can follow Mr Weber’s progress on his Facebook page here.
He also travels to neighbouring Lorraine and hopes that publicising his work will raise awareness among local authorities of “this little-known heritage that needs to be preserved, in the same way as castles and churches”.
