Taking Inventory: Sign

Signs were added to Minecraft in September 2009, but they didn’t become craftable until almost a year later – in June 2010. Initially, they could only be placed on the ground, but over time they became more flexible. Now you can place them on the ground, on walls, and even inside furnaces. Though they don’t last very long there.

The easiest way to get a sign is to craft it – six planks and a stick will make three. But in a pinch, they can also be harvested in igloo basements and taiga village houses. They’re easiest to break with an axe, but you can collect them with any tool, or even your bare hands.

Once placed, hit the use button (right-click on PCs) to edit the text – you get four lines to write your masterpiece. It’ll stay there until broken, at which point it’ll be lost forever. But it’s only four lines, so you can probably type it in again without too much fuss.

In the real-world, signs have been around for longer than you might think. Ancient Egyptians, Romans and Greeks all used signs – often to advertise shopfronts or public events. Ancient Roman taverns were marked with a sign showing a bush, and hairdressers had the classic red and white barber’s pole.

Signs also emerged independently in ancient China. Recent research has uncovered copper printing plates used to create posters that advertised a “White Rabbit” brand of sewing needles. The signs promised “high quality steel rods” which were “ready for use at home in no time”.

Signs evolved during the medieval period, becoming particularly popular in London from the 16th century.  At one point, the number and size of large overhanging signs started to interfere with traffic, and authorities were forced to regulate them. 

But it was the USA, of course, which perfected the art of the sign. Animated, illuminated “spectaculars” began to be erected in Manhattan in 1892, and they were further enhanced with the addition of neon tubes in the 1920s. Today, in most major cities around the world, it’s not uncommon to see enormous screens displaying adverts which play on a loop at all hours of the day and night. 

Now wouldn’t it be awesome to play Minecraft on one of those screens?