Chimney Sweep Weathervane

This copper Chimney Sweep Weather Vane is an iconic image of an important trade. It Is fabricated from copper and features glass eyes and brass accents. Our artisans did a remarkable job on this piece, successfully creating the many textures of cloth and brick and hair. As pictured our customer requested optional gold leafing be applied to details of the clothing and the skin. These accents will remain a bright contrast to the darkening copper and brass for many decades as the vane weathers over time.

A chimney sweep is a person who cleans chimneys for a living. They are also referred to as chimney service technicians. The occupation of chimney sweep is considered to be one of the oldest in the world, as chimneys have been around since ancient times.

Only in the last two hundred years has the chimney grown large enough to hold a man, giving rise to the image of the chimney sweep as it developed in the time of the Industrial Revolution. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries in Western Europe, construction of rooflines with crow-stepped gables became common to allow chimney sweeps convenient access to the chimney top. With the increased urban population, the number of houses with chimneys grew in pace and the profession of chimney sweep became much respected and sought-after, though sometimes derided in verse, ballad and pantomime.