Hemispherical bells.

[jim phillips]

In about 1961 I was passing Victoria Park in the East End of London when I
heard 10 bells being chimed. The sound was coming from a brick built
slender tower with a pyramid roof attached to a Church. The bells sounded
like conventional bells and there was a familiar and distinctive lorry
parked outside. When I next saw Ernie Rowe of the Whitechapel Foundry I
asked him about these mystery bells. He said they were hemispherical bells
and that he had been working on the mechanism. Does that Church still exist
with the hemispherical bells? The early editions of Dove listed places with
hemispherical bells and perhaps someone could look at say a first edition
and confirm this installation. Why were installations of hemispherical bells
dropped from Dove? The bells make the same sound as conventional shaped
bells being chimed and are a good substitute when there is not enough room
for a conventional bell chime. At least the sound is far better than that
produced by electronic means. Why have firms stopped making hemispherical
bells for places where there is no room for conventional bells? They are
made of bell metal and could keep the furnaces going. With the relentless
march of unmusical electronic sounds emanating from many churches a sound
of anything made of bell metal is surely a relief.