A roof finial is the piece that crowns the ridge. It finishes the structural post of the roof frame, helps keep water out, and gives the roof its accent. Too small, and it disappears; too elaborate, and it overwhelms a simple house. Here is how to choose the size and the style, based on what we make in the Verdets workshop near Oloron-Sainte-Marie, and on what we set out on our product pages and installation notes.
What is a roof finial made of?
All our roof finials are cut, formed and assembled by hand in zinc or copper, using traditional ornamental zinc-work techniques. Zinc takes on a pearl-grey patina over time; copper moves from bright pink to brown and then to verdigris. Both metals last for decades with no maintenance; we guarantee them for 10 years against corrosion. To choose between the two metals, see our article Zinc or copper: which metal to choose.
The catalogue runs from the plainest silhouettes to the most ornate: one or two balls, flat balls, turned balls, a doucine moulding, a pine-cone, or the designs with bells and acanthus leaves. Heights range from 30 cm (the pine-cone, and the smaller single-ball sizes) up to 180 cm for the bell-and-acanthus finial. In between, most models come in several heights — 40, 50, 70, 80, 90, 110 or 150 cm depending on the reference — so they can match the volume of the roof.
Size: start from the roof, not from the piece alone
A finial is seen from the street or the garden, often against the light, from 15 or 30 metres. That distance, and the height of the ridge, govern the format — not only a preference for one design.
- On a single-storey house, a shelter or a small building (a low ridge), a finial of 30 to 70 cm stays well proportioned. The 30 cm pine-cone, a single-ball model or a small doucine is often enough.
- On a two-storey house, 50 to 110 cm is the most common range: two balls, two flat balls or a more generous single ball hold the scale of the roof without overpowering it.
- On a barn, a long farmhouse or a large roof, you need to go higher: 100 to 180 cm, up to the bell-and-acanthus model. A 50 cm finial looks tiny on a long ridge.
If a weathervane is to sit on top, include its height in the overall silhouette. A sound proportion, which we set out in How to choose the height of your weathervane, is a finial of about half the height of the vane: a 115 cm vane on a 50 to 70 cm finial, a 155 cm vane on an 80 to 100 cm finial. The bell-and-acanthus finial then makes a generous base for a large motif.
Style: an accent, not a bolted-on decoration
The style of the finial should speak the same language as the house and the roof covering. On a contemporary roof, one or two balls, a flat ball or a turned ball stay discreet and easy to read. On an older building, a manor house or a restored barn, the more elaborate models — bells, acanthus, richer doucine profiles — belong there. The less common pine-cone suits modest volumes and roofs with a rustic or garden character.
At the end of a ridge, a four-sided pinnacle (35, 50 or 80 cm) can replace or complement a finial, especially on a turret, a dormer or an exposed post. And if the ridge itself is to be underlined, our ornamental cresting, sold by the metre, is fitted over the existing ridge: the finial motif and the frieze motif are then chosen together.
Installation, in brief
The finial is fixed to the roof frame with a 12 mm diameter threaded rod, screwed into the ridge beam. On a zinc ridge, the base is soldered or screwed; on a tiled or slate roof, the roofer forms a waterproofing collar. Models more than a metre high must be stayed or fixed on a long rod. For any work at height and to keep the roof watertight, we recommend installation by a roofer: we can pass on dimensions and fixing notes, and answer questions on +33 6 71 26 37 92 (Monday to Friday, 9 a.m.–6 p.m.). The details are on our Delivery, lead times and installation page.
If you are unsure: a photograph
Each piece is made to order in the workshop, then shipped within 7 working days (a wholly new motif or a volume order is confirmed by e-mail before we start). Send us a photograph of the roof taken from the street, with the approximate ridge height, via the contact page or at artisangirouette@gmail.com: we will suggest the height and the model. The workshop, at 24 rue des Pyrénées in Verdets (64400), can also be visited by appointment.