The eagle-eyed among you – or maybe the peregrine-eyed? – may have noticed that since November 2021 our iconic 50 metre tower has been missing one of its four weathervanes. If you hadn’t noticed, then take a look – the one pinnacle standing empty can be seen not just when standing in the churchyard looking up, but also from far away.
Why have been weathervane-less? Simply because the iron work of the original had failed and was in danger of falling, so it was intentionally removed. There have been lots of unavoidable delays in getting the weathervane refurbished, but the gilding work is now complete, and a new replica mast has been fabricated. Today, conservation specialists were on site to reinstate the weathervane. Alas, further unforseen problems were encountered—some of the original ironwork embedded in the pinnacle has corroded and failed and some specialist engineering work will be required to renew this. Doing this work at 50 metres up is quite an undertaking.
So, with the Peregrine season fast approaching (when we are required to avoid any disturbance tower-top) it means a further delay to the weathervane’s return, both until later in the year and also for when an engineering solution can been found. Then there’s the challenge of funding this new, unexpected and costly phase of work too……..
However, you can see in the photo here the newly gilded weathervane looking stunning….albeit at ground level.
