Wyvern Weathervane - Iron Bridge - Exeter, Devon
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SMacB
N 50° 43.425 W 003° 32.079
30U E 462261 N 5619242
Wyvern weathervane at the city end of Iron Bridge. A replica of the original, which is now in the Royal Albert Memorial Museum & Art Gallery, Exeter.
Waymark Code: WM15QW0
Location: South West England, United Kingdom
Date Posted: 02/12/2022
Views: 3
"A replica of Exeter’s historic Wyvern weathervane – a lesser known historic landmark of the city – has been erected at the Iron Bridge near the City Gate Hotel.
The 200 year old original was taken down a few years ago and removed to the Royal Albert Memorial Museum after its fixing came adrift. It was decided it was too fragile to be put back up, and it would instead be on display at the RAMM.
The original Exeter Wyvern was set on top of the city’s North Gate until this was demolished in 1769, after which it was moved to the Quay. It was brought back to the site of the North Gate in 1897 as part of the celebrations of Queen Victoria’s Jubilee, as commemorated on a stone plaque at the base of the pole.
The age of the Wyvern is not known, although the use of copper rather than iron suggests it is at least 200 years old. It had a chequered history, with some of its dents thought to be due to musket fire during the Civil War, although this attractive idea is impossible to prove.
Cleaning has revealed that it was painted only in the last 100 years of its life, first in yellow – probably when it was re-erected for Victoria’s Jubilee, and then in a brass effect when it was last restored by the Civic Society in 1976. Neither the careful cleaning, nor an x-ray courtesy of Exeter International Airport, has revealed any earlier decoration, apart from some hint of gilding around its tongue.
The replica Wyvern, faithfully reproduced in copper by Neil Bollen of the RAMM, is now swinging on top of the pole opposite the City Gate Hotel, where hopefully it will stay for another 200 years."
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