The windpomp! True in its purpose!
Travelling South Africa the windpomp or “wind pump” is a landscape feature across the country which cannot be missed.
You will go far to find a better word than WINDPOMP in Afrikaans and far to find a better symbolic object to capture on camera.
Windpompe are commonly used in Southern Africa and in South Africa alone there are still thousands, pumping water not only for households but also for animals. Mostly water is pumped from beneath the service of the earth into a handmade dam. Water can also be pumped from a source of fresh water like wells or dams.
I can remember as a child the excitement I felt when I climbed the windpomp on my grandpa’s farm. The coolness of the pipes, the sound from the blades and the wind, the rush to get to the top and then, the amazing view.
It takes a strong wind to turn the blades so that it can start the process of pumping water – This then also why there is a saying that the windpomp waits patiently, it does not go out and look for the wind. A lesson for all of us.
The windpomp requires little maintenance – The love of the farmer is water and he have a true and long lasting friend in his windpomp.
The windpomp, for me, a true heritage item which I will cling to for the rest of my life!
Photo taken at Winburg, Free State, South Africa
Photo taken at Ventersdorp, North West Province, South Africa
Photo taken at Muldersdrift, Gauteng Province, South Africa
