Weather Vanes

Weather vanes in general go back to ancient times and copper weather vanes are beautiful and functional pieces that look amazing within your garden. You can tell which ones have been in place for quite a while as the copper turns that same green color the Statue of Liberty is. This coloring will make it a real conversational piece that guest to your garden will surely notice. This is what happens to copper when it’s been in the elements for quite a while. Most people admire these copper weather vanes but how many of them ever stop to think about the history of the piece and how it was made?

Copper weathervanes go back to before revolutionary days and they were placed on top of barns so that the farmers and his hands knew what direction the wind was blowing and give them an indication of what the weather might do. Benjamin Franklin was the creator of the Poor Richard’s Almanac, probably one of the first forms of weather forecasting in the United States. But there were no true meteorologists back then, so the farmer needed something to use. Most of the copper weather vanes started out as piece of metal that just indicated the direction of the wind. Eventually they turned into the fun animal shapes that we know today.

Copper weather vanes are also the first things most people see as they are approaching a person’s farm. They sit above the tree line like a beacon and most people decided to make them more than just the boring pieces of metal they started out as. Since copper is so malleable, it was the material of choice to bend and shape into the animal-shaped vanes we are used to. Plus copper is a very pretty metal, perfect for all forms of weather. The patina – the green color it becomes over time – protects it and keeps it from rusting like other metals are prone to do.

Setting up copper weather vanes in your garden takes a bit of patience, especially if you want it to be functional as well as decorative. You will need to make sure that it is above your roof line and that it is free to shift with the wind when it blows. Using tall steel rods to mount your copper weather vanes also provides them with support and stability.

Many people also cupolas to their barns in order to mount their copper weather vanes onto. If gives the entire structure a beautiful finished look and helps support the weather vane better than just a steel rod. Some weather vanes also have an additional rod attached to them. These rods are lightning rods and they help attract lightning in the sky away from the other structures on the farm.

If you are interested in purchasing a beautiful weather vane you can browse online catalogs from a variety of companies or have one hand made for you if you live in an area with a lot of crafters.

admin @ May 30, 2008