Antique zinc finial used as a roof ornament on a French château. In the 18th century, zinc became a popular roofing material in France and Belgium. Throughout the 18th and 19th centuries, zinc was also molded into other architectural forms, including roof finials, window surrounds, and decorative columns, as well as utilitarian objects, such as watering cans, wash tubs, and buckets. A hard-wearing, rust-proof material, zinc develops a wonderful gray-white milky patination over the years. Finials of this scale look great on buffets. France circa 1870