Germany Checkpoint Charlie route marker. Up for sale today is this sign from Berlin noting that one is leaving the American Sector. Probably the most famous road sign on the planet. After World War II, Berlin was divided by the four occupying Allied powers-the United States, Great Britain, France, and the USSR-deep in the heart of Soviet-controlled East Germany. The sign here pointed from the American to the Soviet sector at Checkpoint Charlie, where one would cross the Iron Curtain to enjoy the delightful gray mediocrity of Marxist-Leninist ideology. The sign has the same message-YOU ARE LEAVING THE AMERICAN SECTOR-in four languages: English, Russian, French, and German. This design, complete with “US ARMY 6″ (6th Infantry Regiment) designation at the bottom, was the one posted in 1961 when the Berlin Wall was installed. Several signs of near-identical character were used over the years, and a very similar sign-a remake of the 1983 version-exists in Berlin today, and is now a major tourist landmark. Mercifully, today there is no checkpoint, no military occupation, and no wall. The sign is 15 by 10 inches, and weighs 3 lb. This is a high quality, heavy steel sign. Accept no imitations that may be one-third this price, but are one-tenth the quality. No cheap tin to be found here, with the wrong fonts, layouts, size, shape, or any other manner of embarrassing imperfection. This one will make even the most discerning collector stick their nose into the sign, as it looks that good from that close! Would you like a number not seen here? Or perhaps a different style? I can of course make these signs with any route number of your choice, and not just this style, but older and newer ones, and even the classic mileage, direction, and city limit guide signs from the era. Anything you would like, made with unsurpassed quality right here in the good old US of A. Life doesn’t happen along the interstates. It’s against the law. Figure about 5 lb. The watermark and bear logo in the design preview will not appear on the actual sign. We have begun adding a watermark because we have had problems with other companies copying our artwork to make lesser-quality imitations. You will only get this high level of quality in design and materials from Signs by Jake.
