Late 19th century sheet iron and metal “Trotting Horse” weathervane. It has a nice weathered color and patina and is very authentic with six “healthy” bullet holes to boot.
I basically acquired it directly from the owner of a barn in Maine while scouring the countryside in the late 1990’s. He provided me with a polaroid image that he took in 1960, and told me it had been on the barn since 1900 (his writing on the photo); the barn having been built prior to that date (see images). Poloroid images are not the best, but still pretty cool to have some provenance and documentation. The weathervane pole is permanently attached to the vane with five “bolted through” fittings. I had the stand custom made.
Wonderful piece of American folk art, and no doubt as to it’s authenticity.
Dimensions: the actual vane is 22″ high x 24″ wide. With the floor stand it is 34″ high total.
Provenance: From my own collection since 1997