Wind chimes are a common sight nowadays in many homes. The sound they produce is relaxing to most people and they come in almost anything you can think of. Did you know that they had an important function in the early days? Outdoor Decorations

Wind chimes were used to warn people of bad weather. In ancient times people did not have the Internet, TV or radio for weather updates. This was bad for farmers and fishermen whose very existence depended on the elements.

Without sophisticated weather instruments in those days, these people were often at the mercy of unpredictable weather patterns that could make or break their livelihood. When bad weather means no fishing or planting crops, you could imagine how that could be bad for the community. Worse, bad weather could easily destroy their homes and sink their boats without warning.

To prevent this from happening, our forefathers came up with an ingenious solution – the wind chime. The suspension of tubs, metal and wood was all the required assembly.

It produced a distinctive sound when the tubes or rods came in contact with a suspended central clapper in the form of a ball or horizontal disk.

“People hung these wind chimes in places where wind can pass through. By noticing a small change in the melody produced by these wind chimes, they were able to predict which direction the wind was blowing from and the intensity with which it was blowing. Stronger winds and hence more chimes, indicated that a storm was brewing. This was particularly useful for fishermen and people living along coastal region as it warned them not to go to the sea and maybe saved their lives. Our ancestors were so intelligent as to use a simple chime producing instrument as a weather predicting tool,” said the elegant homedecors Web blog at Word Press.

Wind chimes are believed to have originated in India. They were hung to keep birds and evil spirits out of pagodas. These wind bells made it China and then Japan and were used in temples and inside peoples homes. They bring good luck to parts of Asia some people believe.

“Wind chimes can be made of materials other than metal or wood and in shapes other than tubes or rods. Other wind chime materials include glass, bamboo, shell, stone and porcelain. More exotic items, such as silverware or cookie cutters, can also be recycled to create wind chimes. The selected material can have a large impact on the sound a wind chime produces. The sounds produced are not tunable to specific notes and range from pleasant tinkling to dull thuds,” according to Wikipedia.

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