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Lot Essay
Exhibiting a graceful pose and an animation characteristic of the most successful of weathervanes, this wonderful Goddess of Liberty weathervane has few rivals. After the War of 1812, nationalistic fervor reached fever pitch and patriotic motifs such as eagles and Liberty figures were widely sought in all aspects of American material culture. While most Goddess of Liberty weathervanes were made after 1850, they were in response to that patriotic demand. The Goddess is depicted in her liberty cap and holding the flag while her other hand points into the wind. The elegant curves of her body and arm continue into the folds of her skirt and give her a sense of vitality that distinguish her from the majority of Liberty weathervanes, which appear static and stiff in comparison.
William G. Henis opened a shop at 1347 Ridge Avenue in Philadelphia in 1860, and is recorded as a manufacturer of Heaters and Ranges, also Weather-Vanes and Emblematic Signs. His vanes were "made of copper in the best workmanlike manner and gilt with fine gold leaf." For more information on Henis and contemporary Philadelphia industries, see
www.libraries.psu.edu/do/digitalbookshelf 28249814/28249814_part_25.pdf
For two similar examples of William Henis' Goddess of Liberty Weathervanes, see Steve Miller, The Art of the Weathervane, (Exton, PA, 1984), p. 63 and Johanna McBrien, "Harmonious Arrangements," Catalogue of Antiques and Fine Art (Late summer, 2005), pp. 128-139.
The allegorical figure of Liberty, with her spear and liberty cap (also known as a pileus) was a popular symbol towards the end of the eighteenth century and John Adams directed that she be included in the design for a gold medal for Washington to honor his victory over Lord Howe (this design eventually became the prototype for the Great Seal of the United States.) For more on Goddess of Liberty and other patriotic weathervanes, see Charles Klamkin, Weathervanes: The history, manufacture and design (New York, 1973)
In 1966, the current owners purchased the property and barn on which this weathervane was erected from descendants of the Hale family, who had settled on an originally larger property in Tyringham, (Berkshire County) Massachusetts. The barn was reportedly built between 1877 and 1879, as seen in an undated photograph in fig. 1; the barn has since collapsed and the weathervane was recovered.
Details:
Photograph of Eli Hale, Everett Hale and Charles Hale, [undated], after 1879
William G. Henis opened a shop at 1347 Ridge Avenue in Philadelphia in 1860, and is recorded as a manufacturer of Heaters and Ranges, also Weather-Vanes and Emblematic Signs. His vanes were "made of copper in the best workmanlike manner and gilt with fine gold leaf." For more information on Henis and contemporary Philadelphia industries, see
www.libraries.psu.edu/do/digitalbookshelf 28249814/28249814_part_25.pdf
For two similar examples of William Henis' Goddess of Liberty Weathervanes, see Steve Miller, The Art of the Weathervane, (Exton, PA, 1984), p. 63 and Johanna McBrien, "Harmonious Arrangements," Catalogue of Antiques and Fine Art (Late summer, 2005), pp. 128-139.
The allegorical figure of Liberty, with her spear and liberty cap (also known as a pileus) was a popular symbol towards the end of the eighteenth century and John Adams directed that she be included in the design for a gold medal for Washington to honor his victory over Lord Howe (this design eventually became the prototype for the Great Seal of the United States.) For more on Goddess of Liberty and other patriotic weathervanes, see Charles Klamkin, Weathervanes: The history, manufacture and design (New York, 1973)
In 1966, the current owners purchased the property and barn on which this weathervane was erected from descendants of the Hale family, who had settled on an originally larger property in Tyringham, (Berkshire County) Massachusetts. The barn was reportedly built between 1877 and 1879, as seen in an undated photograph in fig. 1; the barn has since collapsed and the weathervane was recovered.
Details:
Photograph of Eli Hale, Everett Hale and Charles Hale, [undated], after 1879