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<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=593423307-06042011>Yes,
the bell in the clip is being treated pretty badly; but at least the police were
following the case up. The team they had with them were primarily
concerned with things stolen from wrecks and while you might expect them to find
a ship's bell in a haul of that kind you can't expect them to be experts on
everything.</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN
class=593423307-06042011></SPAN></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2><SPAN class=593423307-06042011>Peter
Rivet</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face=Arial color=#0000ff size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<BLOCKQUOTE>
<DIV class=OutlookMessageHeader dir=ltr align=left><FONT face=Tahoma
size=2>-----Original Message-----<BR><B>From:</B>
bellhistorians@yahoogroups.com [mailto:bellhistorians@yahoogroups.com]<B>On
Behalf Of </B>Chris Pickford<BR><B>Sent:</B> 05 April 2011 23:26<BR><B>To:</B>
bellhistorians@yahoogroups.com<BR><B>Subject:</B> Re: [Bell Historians]
recovered church bell<BR><BR></FONT></DIV><SPAN
style="DISPLAY: none"> </SPAN>
<DIV id=ygrp-text>
<P>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Yeah, plod and his EH mates dragging an
antique bell roughly over pebbly concrete - not that convincing as a
co-ordinated professional approach top safeguarding stolen heritage property.
Hardly the way to treat a precious artefact! </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Reminds me of a case I've encountered
very recently of a bell from a Warwickshire Country house (which I saw back in
1980 with Chris Dalton who photographed it for me) that was stolen while the
house was unoccupied. It was dated 1610 and inscribed with the names of the
people who owned the house when it was remodelled in the early C17th. It was
sold as unclaimed property in a police auction of stolen goods, but
fortunately someone local realised where it came from - though after the sale,
and the present owners of the house (now a hotel) had to buy it back.
</FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>Apparently (according to the
information now displayed alongside the bell in the hotel foyer) the police
claimed that they hadn't even noticed the inscription and date on the bell at
all - let alone followed the clues (the inscription is in the VCH) as to where
it came from! </FONT></DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2></FONT> </DIV>
<DIV><FONT face="Comic Sans MS" size=2>CP</FONT></DIV>
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