“Provenance is the secret of their appeal to Americans”, said London based dealer in folk art Robert Young; “if they can trace them back to a local community, an early 19th century farmstead, then it gives them a hook into their own history.”
However, this particular model did not really have a vernacular aesthetic, more like modern American kitsch, and as an electric prototype (complete with flapping wings, revolving head, flashing lights) it would have appealed more to those collectors with an interest in scientific, rather than social history.
On the other hand, it did have a certain provenance, having been first exhibited at the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair, and while it was not clear whether the electric mechanism still worked, the weather vane attracted a double-estimate £750 from an American bidder on the telephone.
Pointing towards electric kitsch
The wind has always been blowing strongly in one direction in the market for American weather vanes, and this 1930s example, left, offered at the Harrogate rooms of Morphet’s (10 per cent buyer’s premium) on March 15 was always expected to sell for a high price.
