Boreas the north wind

Boreas was the Greek god of the cold north wind and the bringer of winter, with warm clothes against the cold, holding a conch which indicates the howling of the wind. His name meant 'North Wind' or 'Devouring One'. Boreas was very strong, with a violent temper to match.

The figures of the Eight Winds appeared on the original Tower of the Winds in Athens
and were used by the sculptor John Bacon (1740-99) as the basis for his designs for
the flying figures round the top of the stonework of the Observatory. Bacon also designed the two statues (in cast iron) of Atlas and Hercules who support the globe on the roof.

www.gtc.ox.ac.uk/about/history/radcliffe-observatory