Hopkinsville Kentuckian

STATUE ON BALL BEARINGS
Italian City of Venice Probably Has
Only Example of the Kind in
the World.

There are many kinds of angels
ranging in style from those we read
about in the Bible to those who bring
out talent on the stage, the American
Machinist remarks in describing a
new type of the seraphic assortment.

This angel is "ball bearing." It
stands on top of the famous tower
known as the Campanile di San Marco,
in Venice, and swings to the
wind like a weathervane.

The statue of the angel San Marco,
which surveyed the old city of
lagoons since the sixteenth century,
was found but little damaged among
the ruins after the collapse of the
tower. It was repaired and now
stands again on the lofty height, but
is supported in a very different manner
from the old, for it now rests on
modern ball bearings.

This method of mounting allows
the statue to be turned around a vertical
axis by the wind, so that it
swings automatically into such a position
that the angel always presents
the smallest surface to the wind or
storm. If one considers that the
large wings of the angel, which are
11 feet high, project straight backward,
it may be imagined that the
difference of the wind pressure is
considerable, whether the wind blows
against the small front surface or
against the side exposing the large
surface of the wings.