Description:
bird with legs apart, large curving tail

Label Text:
This object, though it resembles a weathervane, is made of heavy cast iron. It is likely a windmill weight, used on the end of a shaft connected to the wind wheel to balance the weight of the vanes and to govern the turning speed of the wheel. Windmill weights ranged from ten to one hundred pounds. Roosters were especially popular, although weights were also made in the form of other farm animals. Most were painted a basic color, black, blue, red, or green - to match the windmill. This weight has remnants of mustard yellow paint. It is a duplicate of the Formal Rooster in Abby Aldrich Rockefeller Collection, Williamsburg, Virginia.

Tags:
birds

Link to share this object record:
https://museums.fivecolleges.edu/detail.php?t=objects&type=ext&id_number=SC+2003.30.13

Research on objects in the collections, including provenance, is ongoing and may be incomplete. If you have additional information or would like to learn more about a particular object, please email fc-museums-web@fivecolleges.edu.