{{Short description|Meteorological instrumentation used for showing the direction of the wind}} {{Redirect|Weathercock|what is commonly referred to as a "weathercock" in the U.S. and Canada|Windpump}} {{for|similar terms|Weathervanes (disambiguation){{!}}Weathervanes}} {{wikt | weather vane}}
A '''wind vane''', '''weather vane''', or '''weathercock''' is a type of anemoscope 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 {{lang|ang|fana}}, meaning "flag". thumb|A cockerel is a traditional figure used as a vane placed on top of the cardinal directions. 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. If employed on a boat, they are referred to as apparent wind indicators.
==History== thumb|upright=1.2|Wind vanes feature on small horizontal-axis wind turbines
The oldest known textual references to weather vanes date from 1800-1600 BCE Babylon, where a fable called ''The Fable of the Willow'' describes people looking at a weather vane "for the direction of the wind."<ref>Neumann J. and Parpola, S. (1989), "Wind Vanes in Ancient Mesopotamia, About 2000-1500BC," ''Bulleting of the American Meteorological Society'', vol. 64, No. 10</ref> In China, the ''Huainanzi'', dating from around 139 BC, mentions a thread or streamer that another commentator interprets as "wind-observing fan" ({{transliteration|zh|hou feng shin}}, {{lang|zh-Hant-TW|侯風扇}}).<ref name="Needham"/>
The Tower of the Winds in the ''agora'' in Hellenistic Athens once bore on its roof a weather vane in the form of a bronze Triton holding a rod in his outstretched hand, rotating as the wind changed direction. Below this a frieze depicted the eight Greek wind deities. The eight-metre-high structure also featured sundials, and a water clock inside. It dated from around 50 BC.<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Noble |first1= Joseph V. |last2= Price |first2= Derek J. de Solla |author-link2= Derek J. de Solla Price |date= October 1968 |title= The Water Clock in the Tower of the Winds |journal= American Journal of Archaeology |volume= 72 |issue= 4 |pages= 345–355 (353) |doi= 10.2307/503828 |jstor= 503828|s2cid= 193112893 }}</ref>
Military documents from the Three Kingdoms period of China (220–280 AD) refer to the weather vane as "five ounces" ({{transliteration|zh|wu liang}}, {{lang|zh-Hant-TW|五兩}}), named after the weight of its materials.<ref name="Needham">{{Citation |last1= Needham |first1= Joseph|last2= Ling|first2= Wang|volume= 3|title= Science and Civilisation in China: Mathematics and the Sciences of the Heavens and the Earth|publisher=Cambridge University Press|page= 478|year= 1959}}</ref> By the third century, Chinese weather vanes were shaped like birds and took the name of "wind-indicating bird" ({{transliteration|zh|xiang feng wu}}, {{lang|zh-Hant-TW|相風烏}}). The {{transliteration|zh|Sanfu huangtu}} ({{lang|zh-Hant-TW|三輔黃圖}}), a third-century book written by Miao Changyan about the palaces at Chang'an, describes a bird-shaped weather vane situated on a tower roof.<ref name="Needham"/>
The oldest surviving weather vane with the shape of a rooster is the ''Gallo di Ramperto'', made in 820 and now preserved in the Museo di Santa Giulia in Brescia, Lombardy.<ref>Rossana Prestini, ''Vicende faustiniane'', in AA.VV.,''La chiesa e il monastero benedettino di San Faustino Maggiore in Brescia'', Gruppo Banca Lombarda, La Scuola, Brescia 1999, p. 243</ref><ref>Fedele Savio, ''Gli antichi vescovi d'Italia. La Lombardia'', Bergamo 1929, p. hi 188</ref>
Vikings were known for creating ornamental, gilded weathervanes. They were originally crafted to adorn longships, however, became reappropriated for church use after the ships were retired.<ref>{{cite web |title=Viking Weathervanes|url=https://penelope.uchicago.edu/encyclopaedia_romana/britannia/anglo-saxon/maldon/vane.html |website=penelope.uchicago.edu |access-date=29 June 2025}}</ref> A notable example is the Söderala vane from {{circa}} 1050.
=== Christianity === [[File:Cowls and windVanes of Glottenham Oast - geograph.org.uk - 3487216.jpg|thumb|upright=1.2|Oast houses have wind-steered vanes to ensure a controlled draught of air flows through the building.]]
Pope Gregory I (in office 590 to 604) regarded the cockerel as "the most suitable emblem of Christianity", being the emblem of Saint Peter (a reference to Luke 22:34 in which Jesus predicts that Peter will deny him three times before the rooster crows).<ref name="Forlong">[http://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&hl=en&q=Forlong+%22emblem+of+St+Peter%22 John G. R. Forlong, ''Encyclopedia of Religions'': A-d - Page 471]</ref><ref name="Antiquary">{{cite book |author1=Edward Walford |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jeAmWNkmpHUC&pg=PA202 |title=The Antiquary: A Magazine Devoted to the Study of the Past |author2=George Latimer Apperson |publisher=E. Stock |year=1888 |volume=17 |page=202}}</ref> Pope Leo IV (in office 847 to 855) had a weathercock placed on the Old St. Peter's Basilica or old Constantinian basilica.<ref>ST PETER'S BASILICA.ORG - Providing information on St. Peter's Basilica and Square in the Vatican City - The Treasury Museum [http://saintpetersbasilica.org/Interior/Sacristy-Treasury/Items/Museum-8.htm]</ref> As a result of this,<ref name="Forlong" /> rooster representations gradually came into use as a weather vanes on church steeples, and in the ninth century Pope Nicholas I<ref name="smithsonianmag.com">{{cite magazine |author= Jerry Adler |author2= Andrew Lawler |date= June 2012 |title= How the Chicken Conquered the World |url= http://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/how-the-chicken-conquered-the-world-87583657/?no-ist= |magazine= Smithsonian}}</ref> (in office 858 to 867) ordered the figure to be placed on every church steeple.<ref>{{cite book|title= Bulletin of the Pennsylvania Museum|url= https://books.google.com/books?id=0HIEAAAAYAAJ&pg=RA2-PA14 |volume= 1–5|year= 1906|publisher= Pennsylvania Museum of Art, Pennsylvania Museum and School of Industrial Art, Philadelphia Museum of Art|page=14}}</ref> The Bayeux Tapestry, likely commissioned by Bishop Odo of Bayeux in the 1070s, depicts a man installing a weathercock on Westminster Abbey.<ref>Sir Frank Stenton (ed) et al., ''The Bayeux Tapestry. A comprehensive survey'' London: Phaidon, 1957 revised 1965.</ref>
One alternative theory about the origin of weathercocks on church steeples sees them as emblems of the vigilance of the clergy calling the people to prayer.<ref>[http://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&hl=en&q=Forster+Circle+%22devised+as+an+emblem%22 Thomas Ignatius M. Forster, ''Circle of the Seasons'', p. 18]</ref> Another theory says that the weathercock was not a Christian symbol<ref>[http://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&hl=en&q=William+White+%22steeples+may+possibly%22 William White, ''Notes and Queries'']</ref> but an emblem of the sun<ref>[http://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&hl=en&q=Jennings+%22innumerable+weathercocks%22 Hargrave Jennings, ''Phallicism'', p. 72]</ref> derived from the Goths.<ref>[http://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&hl=en&q=Shepard+Walsh+%22derived+from+the+Goths%22 William Shepard Walsh, ''A Handy Book of Curious Information'']</ref> thumb|upright=1.2|A modern scientific weathervane gives the direction of the wind as an electrical signal. A few churches used weather vanes in the shape of the emblems of their patron saints. The City of London has two surviving examples. The weather vane of St Peter upon Cornhill is not in the shape of a rooster, but of a key;<ref>{{cite web|url= https://historylondon.wordpress.com/2013/12/30/vanity-and-wind/|title= History of London: Vanity and Wind|publisher= Wordpress|access-date= 1 June 2016|archive-date= 13 October 2016|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161013031020/https://historylondon.wordpress.com/2013/12/30/vanity-and-wind/|url-status=dead}}</ref> while St Lawrence Jewry's weather vane has the form of a gridiron (symbolising Saint Lawrence).<ref>{{cite web|url= http://www.stlawrencejewry.org.uk/photos.php?pgid=2&photoid=1278087163|title= Our Weather Vane|publisher= St Lawrence Jewry|access-date= 1 June 2016}}</ref>
thumb|upright=1.2|Dragon weather vane from the Index to American Design, National Gallery of Art.
==Modern use== Early weather-vanes had very ornamental pointers, but modern weather-vanes usually feature simple arrows that dispense with the directionals because the instrument is connected to a remote reading station. An early example of this was installed in the Royal Navy's Admiralty building in London – the vane on the roof was mechanically linked to a large dial in the boardroom so senior officers were always aware of the wind direction when they met.
Modern aerovanes combine the directional vane with an anemometer (a device for measuring the speed of the wind). Co-locating both instruments allows them to use the same axis (a vertical rod) and provides a coordinated readout.
According to the Guinness World Records, the world's largest weather vane is a Tío Pepe sherry advertisement located in Jerez, Spain. The city of Montague, Michigan also claims to have the largest standard-design weather vane, being a ship and arrow which measures {{convert|48|ft|m}} tall, with an arrow {{convert|26|ft|m}} long.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.michigan.org/Property/Detail.aspx?p=G4884|title=The World's Largest Weather Vane - Ella Ellenwood|access-date=2010-06-01|archive-date=2012-02-29|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120229194424/http://www.michigan.org/Property/Detail.aspx?p=G4884|url-status=dead}}</ref> A challenger for the title of the world's largest weather vane is located in Whitehorse, Yukon in Canada. The weather vane is a retired Douglas DC-3 CF-CPY atop a swiveling support. Located at the Yukon Transportation Museum<ref>[http://www.goytm.ca goytm.ca]</ref> beside Whitehorse International Airport, the weather vane is used by pilots to determine wind direction, used as a landmark by tourists and enjoyed by locals. The weather vane only requires a 5 knot wind to rotate.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.explorenorth.com/library/aviation/cf-cpy.html |title=DC-3 CF-CPY: The World's Largest Weather Vane - ExploreNorth |publisher=ExploreNorth |access-date=2010-02-13}}</ref> A notably tall weathervane is located in Westlock, Alberta. The classic weather vane that reaches to {{convert|59|ft|m}} is topped by a 1942 Case Model D Tractor. This landmark is located at the Canadian Tractor Museum.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Dunford |first1=Les |title=Tractor museum’s weatherwave stands at 59 feet |url=https://www.townandcountrytoday.com/westlock-news/tractor-museums-weatherwave-stands-at-59-feet-7070810 |access-date=29 June 2025 |work=Town and Country Today|date=31 May 2023 |language=en}}</ref>
==Slang term== The term "weather vane" is also slang for a politician who has frequent changes of opinion, implying they take and change positions based on which way the wind is blowing (opinions of others) rather than personal or political principles, a flip flopper. The National Assembly of Quebec banned this use as unparliamentary language after its use by members.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.metro.co.uk/weird/article.html?in_article_id=71265&in_page_id=2 |title=Quebec bans 'weathervane' insult |date=2007-10-17 |work=Metro |access-date=2019-06-18 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071023173914/https://www.metro.co.uk/weird/article.html?in_article_id=71265&in_page_id=2 |archive-date=2007-10-23}}</ref>
==Gallery==
{{Gallery |title=Weather vanes |width=160 | height=170 |align=center |Museo di Santa Giulia gallo segnavento Brescia.jpg |The Gallo di Ramperto, Museo di Santa Giulia in Brescia (Italy), the oldest surviving weather vane in the shape of a rooster in the world |Cloche cathedrale bourges.JPG |Weather vane in the shape of a pelican and bell on the roof of the Cathedral Saint-Étienne of Bourges (France) |Girouette-Gibet-Creue-Meuse-2.png |Creuë gibbet weather vane dating from the 17th century (France) |VanaToomas.jpg |Weather vanes on the Tallinn Town Hall, the taller one is the iconic Old Thomas |WeatherVane.jpg |Weather vane with dial, New Register House, Edinburgh, Scotland, UK |Board Room of the Admiralty (cropped).jpg |1808 illustration of the Board of Admiralty; a wind indicator can be seen on the end wall. |veletaMasGrandeMundoQueFunciona.jpg |Tío Pepe weather vane in Jerez, Guinness world record of the largest weather vane that works |Douglas DC3.jpg |The Douglas DC-3 that now serves as a weather vane at Yukon Transportation Museum located beside the Whitehorse International Airport. |Weather-vane-install-boat.jpg |A "jin-pole" being used to install a weather vane atop the {{cvt|200|ft|m|order=flip}} steeple of a church in Kingston, New York. |Chickenvane.jpg |Weathercock with verdigris patina |Лаздинай4.jpg |Huge weather vane in Vilnius is among the largest in Europe |Weather vane.ogv |Weather vane (video) |22-11-072-weathervane.jpg|Whirligig weather vane at the Minnesota History Center |Weathercock of Former Tohmas House 20110313.jpg |Weathercock on the {{ill|former Thomas house|ja|神戸市風見鶏の館}}, Kobe, Japan }}
==See also== * List of weather instruments * Weather station * Windsock, in aviation
== References == {{Reflist}}
== Further reading == * {{citation |last1=Bishop |first1=Robert |last2=Coblentz |first2=Patricia |title=A Gallery of American Weather Vanes and Whirligigs |place=New York |publisher=Dutton |year=1981 |isbn=9780525931515 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last=Burnell |first=Marcia |title=Heritage Above: a tribute to Maine's tradition of weather vanes |place=Camden, ME |publisher=Down East Books |year=1991 |isbn=9780892722785 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last1=Crépeau |first1=Pierre |last2=Portelance |first2=Pauline |title=Pointing at the Wind: the weather-vane collection of the Canadian Museum of Civilization |year=1990 |place=Hull, Quebec |publisher=Canadian Museum of Civilization |isbn=9780660129044 |ref=none }} * {{cite book |last=Fitzgerald |first=Ken |title=Weathervanes & Whirligigs |url=https://archive.org/details/weathervaneswhir00fitz |url-access=registration |location=New York |publisher=C. N. Potter |year=1967 }} * {{citation |last=Kaye |first=Myrna |title=Yankee Weathervanes |place=New York |publisher=Dutton |year=1975 |isbn=9780525238591 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last=Klamkin |first=Charles |title=Weather Vanes: The history, design and manufacture of an American folk art |place=New York |publisher=Hawthorn Books |year=1973 |oclc=756017 |ref=none }} * {{citation |author=Lane Arts Council (Or.) |title=Whirligigs & Weathervanes |publisher=Visual Arts Resources |place=Eugene, OR |year=1994 |oclc=33052846 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last1=Lynch |first1=Kenneth |last2=Crowell |first2=Andrew Durkee |title=Weathervanes |place=Canterbury, CN |publisher=Canterbury Publishing Company |year=1971 |oclc=1945107 |series=Architectural Handbook series |ref=none }} * {{citation |last=Messent |first=Claude John Wilson |title= The Weather Vanes of Norfolk & Norwich |place=Norwich |publisher=Fletcher & Son Limited |year=1937 |oclc=5318669 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last=Miller |first=Steve |title=The Art of the Weathervane |place=Exton, PA |publisher=Schiffer Pub. |year=1984 |isbn=9780887400056 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last1=Mockridge |first1=Patricia |last2=Mockridge |first2=Philip |title=Weather Vanes of Great Britain |place=London |isbn=9780709037224 |publisher=Hale |year=1990 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last=Needham |first=Albert |title=English Weather Vanes, their stories and legends from medieval to modern times |place=Haywards Heath, Sussex |publisher=C. Clarke |year=1953 |oclc=1472757 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last1=Nesbitt |first1=Ilse Buchert |last2=Nesbitt |first2=Alexander |title=Weathercocks and Weathercreatures; some examples of early American folk art from the collection of the Shelburne Museum, Vermont |year=1970 |place=Newport, RI |publisher=Third & Elm Press |oclc=155708 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last1=Neumann |first1=J. |last2 = Paropla |first2 = S. |title=Wind Vanes in Ancient Mesopotamia, About 2000-1500 B.C. |publisher=Bulletin of the American Meteorological Society |year=1989 |url=https://www.academia.edu/79699060}} * {{cite book |last=Pagdin |first=W. E. |title=The Story of the Weather Cock |location=Stockton-on-Tees |publisher=E. Appleby |year=1949 }} * {{citation |last1=Reaveley |first1=Mabel E. |last2=Kunhardt |first2=Priscilla |title=Weathervane Secrets |place=Dublin, NH |publisher=W. L. Bauhan |year=1984 |isbn=9780872330757 |ref=none }} * {{citation |last1=Westervelt |first1=A. B. |last2=Westervelt |first2=W. T. |title=American Antique Weather Vanes: The Complete Illustrated Westervelt Catalog of 1883 |year=1982 |place=New York |publisher=Dover |isbn=9780486243962 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3CXyEllQ8VEC |ref=none }}
==External links== {{Commons category-inline|Weather vanes}}
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Category:Ancient inventions Category:Articles containing video clips Category:Greek inventions Category:Hellenistic engineering Category:Meteorological instrumentation and equipment Category:Wind