Weather vane, Charlton Horethorne
Introduction
The photograph on this page of Weather vane, Charlton Horethorne by Maigheach-gheal as part of the Geograph project.
The Geograph project started in 2005 with the aim of publishing, organising and preserving representative images for every square kilometre of Great Britain, Ireland and the Isle of Man.
There are currently over 7.5m images from over 14,400 individuals and you can help contribute to the project by visiting https://www.geograph.org.uk
Weather vane, Charlton Horethorne
Image: © Maigheach-gheal Taken: 5 Feb 2010
The word 'vane' comes from the Anglo-Saxon word 'fane', meaning 'flag'. Originally, fabric pennants would show archers the direction of the wind. Later, the cloth flags were replaced by metal ones, decorated with the nobleman's coat of arms. It was understood that shifts in the wind often indicated changes in the weather. Cardinal points were not added until several centuries later. Weather vanes have always been more than just a wind direction device. Created by skilled craftsman, there is true artistic expression in the varied designs. Initially wood vanes were carved by carpenters or furniture makers, and iron, copper and tin ones were forged by the local blacksmith or tinsmith. In the 19th century weather vanes started to be mass-produced from moulds.
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Image Location
Latitude
51.008096
Longitude
-2.480142