**History:**
– Oldest textual reference to a weather vane in China dates back to around 139 BC.
– Tower of the Winds in Hellenistic Athens featured a weather vane in the form of a bronze Triton.
– Third-century Chinese weather vanes were shaped like birds and named wind-indicating bird.
– Oldest surviving weather vane with the shape of a rooster dates back to 820.
– Rooster representations on church steeples became popular in the ninth century.
**World’s Largest Weather Vane:**
– Tío Pepe sherry advertisement in Jerez, Spain holds the Guinness World Records for the largest weather vane.
– Montague, Michigan claims to have the largest standard-design weather vane, featuring a ship and arrow.
– Whitehorse, Yukon has a challenger for the title with a retired Douglas DC-3 CF-CPY atop a swiveling support.
– Westlock, Alberta has a challenger for the world’s tallest weather vane with a 1942 Case Model D Tractor on top.
– The weather vane in Whitehorse only requires a 5 knot wind to rotate.
**Slang Term:**
– Weathervane is a slang term for a politician with frequent changes of opinion.
– The National Assembly of Quebec banned the use of this slang term as an insult.
**Literary References:**
– A copper-plated antique weathervane is the subject of the mystery in the children’s book ‘The Mystery of the Phantom Grasshopper’ by Kathryn Kenny.
**Gallery:**
– Gallo di Ramperto in Brescia, Italy, is the oldest surviving weather vane in the shape of a rooster.
– Weather vane in the shape of a pelican and bell on the roof of the Cathedral Saint-Étienne of Bourges, France.
– Weather vane with dial at New Register House, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK.
– Tío Pepe weather vane in Jerez holds the Guinness world record for the largest working weather vane.
– Douglas DC-3 serves as a weather vane at the Yukon Transportation Museum beside Whitehorse International Airport.
**Significance and Cultural Symbolism:**
– Originated in ancient Greece and used for indicating wind direction.
– Commonly found on top of buildings and symbolize a combination of function and art.
– Important tool for sailors and a decorative element in architecture.
– Represents a blend of form and function, associated with rural traditions.
– Reflects societal values and beliefs, used in literature and art.
A wind vane, weather vane, or weathercock is an instrument used for showing the direction of the wind. It is typically used as an architectural ornament to the highest point of a building. The word vane comes from the Old English word fana, meaning "flag".
Although partly functional, wind vanes are generally decorative, often featuring the traditional cockerel design with letters indicating the points of the compass. Other common motifs include ships, arrows, and horses. Not all wind vanes have pointers. In a sufficiently strong wind, the head of the arrow or cockerel (or equivalent) will indicate the direction from which the wind is blowing.
Wind vanes are also found on small wind turbines to keep the wind turbine pointing into the wind.
Definition from ChatGPT:
Weather vane:
A weather vane is a device that is typically mounted on the roof of a building and is used to show the direction of the wind. It usually consists of a flat or curved plate that rotates freely on a vertical axis, with one end shaped like an arrow that points into the direction from which the wind is blowing. Weather vanes are often decorative and can come in various designs and shapes.