Blast from past

By Simon Ruppert

Jul 10, 2019

A piece of Victorian history has been brought back to its former glory by Benalla artist Clint Levy — who recently completed the sign-writing on an original 1930s bread cart.

Hold tight - we’re checking permissions before loading more content

The cart was purchased by Glenrowan collector John Paull who tasked Mr Levy, and Burke signs, with creating an era-appropriate livery.

A quick look around the finished cart highlights just how good a job Mr Levy did.

‘‘John Paull is a big collector of memorabilia in north-east Victoria and his passion is doing up pieces of local history,’’ Mr Levy said.

‘‘He came to Burke Signs searching for a sign-writer in the local area and I put my hand up as I specialise in traditional sign-writing — under a bit of guidance from Marty Burke.

‘‘He had already restored the baker’s cart to a period-correct standard, and then he gave me a reference for the signage that he wanted.

‘‘The idea was to replicate the style of a traditional breadmaker’s cart form the 1930s.

‘‘So from there we used the reference photos and it was just about getting the artwork up onto the vehicle in the correct manner.’’

The cart was originally used in the laneways of Melbourne, pulled by a single Clydesdale.

Owner John Paull has restored a range of traditional horse-drawn vehicles during the years and said this cart would not simply be a museum piece — he actually planned to use it.

‘‘I picked this one up last year in Traralgon, at a deceased estate,’’ Mr Paull said.

‘‘Being a horse-drawn enthusiast I had to have it.’’

‘‘I’m hoping to take it to the Benalla show,’’ Mr Paull said.

‘‘We just missed entry for the Royal Melbourne Show, but may get to it at some stage.

‘‘And I also plan to bring it to the Euroa Show.

‘‘But in the meantime I will use it.

‘‘It’s a hobby of mine and I have harness horses, so I will be using it around Glenrowan.’’

Mr Levy said he looked forward to seeing the cart being pulled by Mr Paull’s horses and was glad to get the opportunity to work on it.

‘‘The world is getting more and more digital, but my craft, and Marty’s craft, is trying to keep this type of thing alive,’’ Mr Levy said.

‘‘And it is growing, there’s an increasing demand for hand-styled or handcrafted work.

‘‘It’s pretty exciting to get to do this type of thing.

‘‘It’s a nice piece of history, and as a sign-writer being able to keep the craft alive is important and rewarding.’’