[Bell Historians] The sound of bells in 1170

[Chris Pickford]

Thanks, Richard - all useful

But two brief come-backs:
First we're talking 1150 not 1520, and the limits of casting technology (just how big a bell could they have cast?) may have been very different four centuries earlier
Second, even with four platforms and four ropes (although maybe there's a further point of leverage I haven't considered) - how practical is it to get 32 ringers (all co-operating efficiently) on one bell?

Off to a wedding now - hope to read more when I get back tomorrow

CP



  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Richard Smith 
  To: bellhistorians at yahoogroups.com 
  Sent: Saturday, November 07, 2009 9:26 AM
  Subject: Re: [Bell Historians] The sound of bells in 1170


    
  Chris Pickford wrote:

  > The idea that these bells were rung by treading beams 
  > certainly seems plausible - but do we know anything from 
  > elsewhere about how many people (e.g. per ton of bell) it 
  > took to operate this system. If they weren't that heavy, 
  > why were so many ringers needed?

  The Sigmund bell at Kraków cathedral in Poland weighs 
  somewhere in the region of 9 to 10 tons (Dickon has the 
  exact figure) and was cast in 1520. It is hung with two 
  long wooden beams fastened to its very large wooden 
  headstock. The beams probably extend about 10 feet either 
  side of the bell, and the bell is rung by people hauling on 
  ropes hung from the end of these beams. So far as I could 
  see, the fittings seemed well maintained. However even 
  today, ten to twelve ringers are required to ring it (or so 
  they claim; I didn't actually see it done). That's 
  approaching one-and-a-half ringers per ton.

  I guess that bells rung by treading on the beams would 
  require more ringers as it seems to me that is a less easy 
  way of putting the bell into motion. Add more friction to 
  the bearings and clapper, and I could easily believe as many 
  as three ringers per ton, maybe even four. Even so, this 
  would make Wybert's bell weigh six to eight tons. The 
  question is, how unbelievable is this? From memory (I'm 
  writing this en route to the ASCY dinner), Prior Henry's 
  14th C bell at Canterbury weighed 64 cwt. Are any larger 
  bells of this era known?

  RAS

             
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