Hood ornaments cars

Americans call them hood ornaments, but in England they are known as car mascots. Their origin back to the childhood of the car. Early cars have a heater outside the car and the radiator cap is mounted above the grille. Early cars also tend to be too hot and without any warning to the driver, the steam flows from the radiator. This led to the design temperature gauge mounted on the radiator cap.
Decoration is then placed on the meter to improve their appearance. So began the life of ornaments. As technology improved, the radiator is mounted under the hood and move the temperature gauge on the dash, but save the hood ornament. They are very popular from the 1920s through the 1950s, but fell out of favor.
Hood ornaments are usually cast in brass, zinc or bronze and then coated with nickel, chrome or silver. Some are even marked with lights that illuminate at night. They are mostly designed for a company car or a feature of the car manufacturers want to emphasize that symbolizes.
Hood ornament, especially luxury cars, it quickly became a work of art and often created by artists rather than producers. Today most are collector's items.
Perhaps one of the most famous adorn the Rolls Royce. It was made by Charles Sykes, who for the initial ruling as "A graceful little goddess, the Spirit of Ecstasy, which ride on the highway was chosen as the highest joy and alighted on the prow of a Rolls Royce car to enjoy the fresh air and the sound of music from the curtain fluttered."
The Spirit of Ecstasy is three inches high and made of stainless steel. Originally made of white metal. The picture shows a woman with a finger to his lips, as if warning against revealing confidential.
Another artist, a famous mascot, is Rene Lalique. Lalique first won fame as an innovative designer jewelry creations attracted the attention of the rich and famous who later became his loyal clients. In 1893, he began working with glass was initially specialized in perfume bottles. When in 1920 he started manufacturing car mascot in a clear glass, satin finish, matte, and the tones of amethyst, pink, purple, blue, topaz and gray.
The most famous and largest is the "Spirit Wind" Art Deco style that measured four inches in length and mounted in Minerva, shown at 1928 Paris Motor Show.
Perhaps his most famous is the head of the eagle's Nazi army cars' built during World War II. One of the wonders that the Nazis would agree with the symbol of American freedom to use their cars as a mascot.