Weather vanes still very popular

Some of the questions that came to my mind when I first heard about weather vanes were, “Weather vanes? Isn’t that a thing of the past? Who would buy that today?” Those are valid questions, and I’m sure many of you must have thought about it this way. But then, you know, the law of the universe says that once you’ve gripped your attention to something new, no matter how trivial that might be to your existence, the very fact that it crossed your mind, makes that thing to keep manifesting itself in various forms in front of you, and you cannot help notice it. So it happened that I kept noticing weather vanes everywhere - perched on top of peoples’ houses, in the garden of a friend I visited, and even on a keychain! (although this was only an image of a weathervane).

This prodded me to do a little bit of checking on weather vanes and I realized that there is a huge market for it. People are buying them! In fact, some of the antique pieces from the late 19^th century get sold for thousands of dollars. In October 2006, an antique copper weathervane, dating to 1900 and once owned by the Ford family, was sold for $5.84 million! This piece was bought by Jerry Lauren (executive vice president at Ralph Lauren) and his late wife Susan, and now proudly sits in his Park Avenue apartment. This one was perhaps the most expensive weathervane, but prices for antique weather vanes range from $3,500 to $350,000.¹ Weather vanes are increasing gaining popularity among collectors, and become their treasured assets.

Weather vanes need not always be coming from the 19^th century, and you do not have to necessarily spend hundreds and thousands of dollars to own one. There is a huge demand for weather vanes in the market, and there are more vanes being made today than at any point in history. Weather vanes can be manufactured by different techniques, and can come at a variety of price ranges. But if you want to have a vane that can last long, you should go ahead with one that is hand-crafted. These ones are generally made from high quality copper, and are polished with weather resistant materials. Some vanes are made in such a way that they develop an attractive patina over time, giving the weathervane an antique look. Few retailers provide a free mount so that you don’t have to worry about finding an expert who can help you with mounting these structures over your roof. The larger, roof top vanes can cost you about $300 to $1,000, whereas the standard-sized ones that are great for your garden, patio, or even your walls are even more affordable. You can easily find a weather vane for as low as $69 in this size range.   

Weather vanes, old or new, can certainly enliven your home. A large, beautifully crafted eagle or a heron perched on top of your house, can offer a unique aesthetic appeal that can transform your otherwise ordinary house into a landmark.  Weather vanes look charming even inside your home – perched on shelves, tabletops, or displayed on walls.