[Bell Historians] Help with entries in the 1552 inventory

[pag.watts at btinternet.com]

Just a thought, and not sure if there is a link ...  but "Rate" or "Rated"
was also used a naval measurement dating back at least to the time of the
Mary Rose (launched in 1511), and up to the 19th Century, to indicate the
size of warships based on a recognised 'scale' of the number of heavy guns
they carried.

A 'first rate' ship carried at least 100 guns (cannon), while second, and
third rate ships were proportionally smaller.  A third rated warship for
example, carried at least 74 guns.

And it is not unknown for bronze cannon to have been founded using the same
skills as bell founding - and potentially in some cases by the same people,
so could the terminology could have been more generic?

 

As others have said below, "to follow the rate" could then well have meant
following 'a generic scale of sizes/weights related to the tenor bell'.

 

Phil 

 

 

 

 

 

From: Bell-historians <bell-historians-bounces at lists.ringingworld.co.uk> On
Behalf Of Chris Pickford via Bell-historians
Sent: 23 April 2026 12:04
To: Bell Historians <bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk>
Cc: Chris Pickford <pickford5040 at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [Bell Historians] Help with entries in the 1552 inventory

 

Basically means in proportion, I think.

Chris 

 

Sent from Outlook for Android <https://aka.ms/AAb9ysg> 

  _____  

From: Bell-historians <
<mailto:bell-historians-bounces at lists.ringingworld.co.uk>
bell-historians-bounces at lists.ringingworld.co.uk> on behalf of Richard Smith
via Bell-historians < <mailto:bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk>
bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk>
Sent: Thursday, April 23, 2026 11:01:18 AM
To:  <mailto:bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk>
bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk <
<mailto:bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk>
bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk>
Cc: Richard Smith < <mailto:richard at ex-parrot.com> richard at ex-parrot.com>
Subject: Re: [Bell Historians] Help with entries in the 1552 inventory 

 



On Thu 23/04/2026 10:26,  <mailto:bill at hibberts.co.uk> bill at hibberts.co.uk
wrote:
> I have been looking at a number of 1552 inventory entries recently (as 
> transcribed in Stahlschmidt Surrey Bells) and there is some language I 
> don't understand. Here are three examples:
> 
> Compton: Item iij bells in the steepull the best bye estimacion vc and 
> the residew under after the rate
> 
> Cranleigh: Item iiij bells hanging in the steple the best waieth xviic 
> and the reaste one under another according to the rate
> 
> West Horsley: Item four gret bells in the steple the best by estimacion 
> xiiijc the rest under after the rate.

I would interpret each of these as saying that the tenor (the 'best' 
bell by weight) is specified weight (5 cwt, 17 cwt, and 14 cwt, 
respectively), and that the other bells are proportionately lighter in 
the expected manner for a tuned ring of bells.

RAS

_______________________________________________
Bell-historians mailing list
 <mailto:Bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk>
Bell-historians at lists.ringingworld.co.uk
 <https://lists.ringingworld.co.uk/listinfo/bell-historians>
https://lists.ringingworld.co.uk/listinfo/bell-historians

-------------- next part --------------
A non-text attachment was scrubbed...
Name: winmail.dat
Type: application/ms-tnef
Size: 7302 bytes
Desc: not available
URL: <http://lists.ringingworld.co.uk/pipermail/bell-historians/attachments/20260423/1a999e55/attachment-0001.bin>