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This section contains the most frequently asked questions
to the web site as well as the answers.
Select
the number of a question.What is a belfry ?
Where is the largest bell in the world to be found
?How are bells made ?
What is the "foliot" of a clock ?
Why is the number 4 on certain clock faces indicated as IIII
instead of the standard Roman IV ?
What is the meaning of the word "campanological ?"
Why are rattles considered bell-related objects ?
Is it true that the bronze of certain bells include traces of gold or
silver?
What is the reason for this?
What is bell-ringing automation ?
The word "belfry" comes from the old Saxon ‘bel" (bell) and "fred" (peace). Initially the belfry was a solid wooden scaffolding which could bear considerable weight. It generally took on the shape of a tower. This type of wooden scaffolding was used at first, but subsequently metal girders replaced them to be able to support bells in towers made of stone. The belfry thus took on the shape of a cage, simply supported by bays fixed to the walls. The flexibility of the system allowed for the amortization of the shaking caused by the ringing of the bells. The stonework was therefore protected from any possible cracking.
The whole structure is given the name belfry, that is to say a tower containing both a bell and a steeple.However habit has brought about the use of the word belfry for municipal towers in general.
Belfry of the Cologne cathedral, Germany
The largest bell in the world is found in Moscow, in the Kremlin and is called "Tsar Kolokol". It weighs 20 tons and is 7.80 m high. Its diameter measures 6 m. It was, however, never lifted off the ground because, after a fire, it had to be completely washed down. Thermal shock then caused it to crack.
The crack left an opening so large that people can still enter and visit its interior.
From "The Bells of Russia" by E.V. Williams
The technique for casting bells is singular : Bronze used for making bells is an alloy made up of 78% copper and 22% tin. This proportion corresponds to the best result for both the fusion of the metal and excellent resonance. The alloy is pale yellow in colour. The founding is divided into three parts : the interior and exterior contour of the false bell is executed according to proportion tables which link the desired weight of the bell (which determines its note) with the thickness of the lip and the large diameter of the base. This contour is made with an interior large enough for the core and an exterior large enough for the clay false bell on which decorative elements and wax inscriptions are applied. These are moulded apart in wooden moulds. The baking mould, or cope, is constructed above the false bell which, once destroyed, leaves space for the fused metal. Carillon bells are tuned and their contour complies to laws of acoustics, the diameter increasing with the deepness of the sought-after sound. Until the beginning of the 19th century, bells were cast directly on the ground in front of the church to which it was destined.
Bell casting, making the mould (From the Diderot’s
Encyclopedia, 1786)
The foliot was the regulator of the oldest mechanical clock system. It was a simple horizontal crosspiece with two régules to adjust the length of the oscillations. It had no specific period but was dependent on the force supplied by the escapement.
It was a matter therefore of rather irregular rest oscillations and the crazy (fou in Modern French, fol in Old French) character of movement which gave the French name "foliot" to this piece.This piece was quickly replaced by the pendulum.
(From the ANCAHA bulletin, no. 70)
In regard to the question concerning clock faces, two possible answers were given by master clockmakers :
(From. CAMPA)
The word campanological, now dated, comes from the Latin "campana" (bell) and is rarely used in current speech. It disappeared from dictionaries about 20 years ago. Campanological art embraces all aspects of the bell: how it is made, its traditions and the uses it has had in the course of history
During Holy Week, from Thursday to Saturday (generally up until the singing of the "Gloria" during the mass) bells remain silent. They are replaced by so-calledinstruments "of darkness" used to call the faithful to religious service and to provide rhythm to ceremonies.These instruments are slatted or hammered rattles, clappers and whips. The rest of the year, when not used for religious purposes, some of these instruments are used in carnivals and hullabaloos.
Different types of rattles (From IEAC Midi-Pyrenees)
Itinerant founders clung to the idea for a long period of time that the presence of silver or gold in the bronze of a bell would give it better resonance. In order for a bell to be the best possible, villagers were asked to bring coins or other objects containing these metals that they would place themselves in the oven prior to the heating of the metal. These "offerings" also had an expiatory connotation.
In fact, the founders, thanks to a trap, were able to recuperate these objects of worth and keep them for themselves. Metal analysis of bells claiming to contain precious metals never revealed any trace of them.
Automated ringing is a system either mechanical (a tipped barrel), electric (a contact wheel or a perforated band) or electronic (a microprocessor) which makes use of and runs the various ways of striking a bell within a bell tower.
Before the birth of such automated systems, a person, generally a bell ringer or a carilloner was in charge of carrying out this extensive, daily and often painful work manually. The pain stemmed from the difficulty of getting to the bells.
Large tipped barrel (Bruges, Belgium)
