If you set your monitor at FULL SCREEN from TOOLS you will be better able to view the photos
My family has always called this weather vane, the Great Golden Pig. I call her Matilda. She is a fantastic Antique Gilded Weather Vane which I acquired about 20 years ago from a gentleman in New Hampshire who had a large collection of gilded weather vanes. He was over 90 years old and well past the time when he could answer any questions about his collection. The sale was actually run by his daughter, who told me that she herself was over 70, and all she knew was that he had been collecting the weather vanes his whole life. So I don't have an exact idea about the date of this weather vane, but I would think it dates from around 1880-1910.
On the base, this vane stands 20 1/2 inches tall, there are some 2 inches of rod down into the base. From the front tip of Matilda's snout to the end of her rump, she is 27 inches long. I made the wooden base from a piece of old lumber liberated when our barn/home was reconstructed. It is 3 1/2 inches square on end and 15 1/4 inches long.
There is no serious damage to this weather vane. Both the front and back ends of the thin horizontal piece on which she stands are a little wavy, but not much. Of course, much of the gilding has naturally worn away revealing what I believe to be a reddish bole, rather than rust. But there is some of that on the un-gilded support rod.
On the whole, this piece is in pretty good condition, is certainly very handsome and a great example of antique American metal work.
If you should have any questions, please don't hesitate to contact me, and thanks for looking.
AAFA
AAFA means Antique Americana and Folk Art and is used as a short cut to finding items that are true antiques, not reproductions, and are American. I guarantee that all of my items are as described. I will only use the AAFA designation for items which fit the criteria.
Due to limitations of photography and the inevitable differences in monitor settings, the color of the pictures on your monitor may be slightly different from the piece itself, but I did my best to capture it as it is. And, at least on my monitor, the color is a perfect match.
