Prototype for everything, peeling transfers

Spotted at the Gloucester & Warwickshire Railway, a station sign with the letters peeling off.

Apparently they were removed during the war when with the threat of invasion looming, signs were removed or defaced so as not to aid the Germans. Many stations lost their names altogether which meant you were relying on knowing where you were going - assuming your journey was really necessary of course - or that the guard called out the right name when you arrived and you heard him over the cacophony outside.

Once the threat passed, sings started to reappear. It seems that here, the letters were replaced with painted fibreboard. Over time, this cot damp and started to curl up.

All I could think when I saw it was that I've applied transfers to things that do the same. Usually when a deadline is looming...