A short history of Wind Chimes…and what to look for in quality!
Wednesday, February 25th, 2009Many hundreds of years ago Wind Chimes were used around shrines and temples to scare away animals. They have been around since the 2nd century C.E. They were also made for the purpose of scaring away bad spirits. There is a belief in China and parts of Asia, that Wind Chimes brought good luck to the families whenever they were placed on the corners of the people’s homes.
Of the 2 types of wind chimes made, one type is called Harmonic Wind Chimes, which were made for bringing luck. This type was made to produce specific notes that were pleasing to the ears. The other type was made for just making some kind of harmonic noise. These were the one’s that were made for frightening away animals.
Wind Chimes can be made out of almost any type of material, such as wood, glass, different types of metal, shells, bamboo, porcelain, and stones and other things. The center plate, which is called a ball, is centered exactly half way down the chimes length. This would help achieve hitting certain soft sounding notes. The tubes are cut to a certain length, depending on what note the maker wanted to hit. So a little knowledge of music would be a great help in producing a Great Wind Chime.