More than 50 historical plaques in Norwich Lanes explained

Each plaque tells its own individual story and denotes a particular chapter of the city's rich history - but where did they come from?

Sally Barrett posing with her work. (Image: Newsquest)

The plaques are the works of artist Sally Barratt who worked for Norwich City Council for more than 19 years and who studied at Norwich Art School - now Norwich University of the Arts - in the late 1980s.

They were designed as part of a project to tell the story of Norwich’s industrial and social past, including to commemorate noteworthy public houses and to mark where weavers, cabinet makers and chemists once worked.

A plaque depicting a hammer and anvil. (Image: Newsquest)

The Street Level Desires scheme saw the city council work with local traders and the Heritage Economic and Regeneration Trust to transform the city’s pedestrianised spaces, seeing the first of Sally's plaques laid at the end of 2007.

READ MORE: What can plaques tell us about city's pub heritage?

Numbering more than 50, most of the plaques measure roughly half a metre wide and are bordered with very noticeable stonework, making them easily visible underfoot in the busy Norwich Lanes.

The Maddermarket is a recognisable sight in Norwich's Lanes. (Image: Newsquest)

Found primarily along Pottergate, St Benedicts Street, Bedford Street and Bridewell Alley - the plaques include designs of Horatio Nelson, the Maddermarket, the Lobster Inn and the Corn Exchange. 

The city's former Corn Exchange was built between 1859 and 1861 as a place for farmers and dealers to sell their crops and was also used as a venue for socialising.  

The Corn Exchange was commemorated with a plaque in the Lanes. (Image: Newsquest)

A number of the plaques can be found around Strangers Hall where Flemish workers settled in the fourteenth century, bringing with them a booming textile trade and once making up more than a third of the city's population.