View source for Bell

{{short description|Percussion instrument}}
{{about|the instrument}}
{{pp-move}}
{{pp-move|small=yes}}
{{technical reasons|Bell #9801|the memorial with that title|Bell 9801}}
{{Infobox Instrument
|name=Bell
|image=Parts of a Bell.svg
|image_capt=Parts of a typical tower bell hung for swinging: {{nowrap|1. Bell yoke or headstock,}} {{nowrap|2. canons,}} {{nowrap|3. crown,}} {{nowrap|4. shoulder,}} {{nowrap|5. waist,}} {{nowrap|6. sound bow,}} {{nowrap|7. lip,}} {{nowrap|8. mouth,}} {{nowrap|9. clapper,}} {{nowrap|10. bead line}}
|background=percussion
|classification=[[Struck idiophone]]
|hornbostel_sachs=111.242
|hornbostel_sachs_desc=Bells: Percussion vessels with the vibration weakest near the vertex
|range=From very high to very low
|related=[[Tubular bells|Chimes]], [[Cowbell (instrument)|cowbell]], [[handbell]], [[gong]]
}}
A '''bell''' [[Help:IPA/English|/ˈbɛl/]] ({{Audio|En-us-bell.ogg|}}) is a [[struck idiophone|directly struck idiophone]] [[percussion instrument]]. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong [[strike tone]], with its sides forming an efficient [[resonator]]. The strike may be made by an internal "clapper" or "uvula", an external hammer, or—in small bells—by a small loose sphere enclosed within the body of the bell ([[jingle bell]]).

Bells are usually cast from [[bell metal]] (a type of [[bronze]]) for its resonant properties, but can also be made from other hard materials. This depends on the function. Some small bells such as ornamental bells or cowbells can be made from cast or pressed metal, glass or ceramic, but large bells such as a church, clock and tower bells are normally cast from bell metal.

Bells intended to be heard over a wide area can range from a single bell hung in a turret or [[bell-gable]], to a musical ensemble such as an English [[ring of bells]], a [[carillon]] or a Russian [[Russian Orthodox bell ringing|zvon]] which are tuned to a common scale and installed in a [[bell tower]]. Many public or institutional buildings house bells, most commonly as [[Striking clock|clock bells]] to sound the hours and quarters.

Historically, bells have been associated with religious rites, and are still used to call communities together for religious services.{{sfn|Ross|1911|pp=687–691}} Later, bells were made to commemorate important events or people and have been associated with the concepts of peace and freedom. The study of bells is called [[campanology]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Rubino |first=Anthony |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s-fsDQAAQBAJ&dq=The+study+of+bells+is+called+campanology.&pg=PT110 |title=Why Didn't I Think of That?: 101 Inventions that Changed the World by Hardly Trying |date=2010-03-18 |publisher=[[Simon and Schuster]] |isbn=978-1-4405-0698-7 |language=en}}</ref>

==Etymology==
[[File:13th-12th Cent. BC Shang Bronze Bell.jpg|thumb|13th c. BC bell, [[Shang dynasty]]]]
''Bell'' is a word common to the [[Low German]] dialects, cognate with [[Middle Low German]] {{lang|gml|belle}} and [[Dutch language|Dutch]] {{lang|nl|bel}} but not appearing among the other [[Germanic languages]] except the [[Icelandic language|Icelandic]] {{lang|is|bjalla}} which was a loanword from [[Old English]].<ref name=oed1 /> It is popularly{{sfn|Haweis|1878|p=536}} but not certainly<ref name=oed1 /> related to the former sense of ''to bell'' ({{langx|ang|bellan}}, 'to roar, to make a loud noise') which gave rise to ''[[Screaming|bellow]]''.<ref name=oed4 />

== History ==
[[File:銅鈴 Chinese Bell.jpg|thumb|left|Chinese bronze bell, 18th–16th century BCE]]
[[File:Bianzhong.jpg|right|thumb|[[Bianzhong of Marquis Yi of Zeng]], dated 433 BCE]]
The earliest archaeological evidence of bells dates from the 3rd millennium BCE, and is traced to the [[Yangshao culture]] of [[Neolithic China]].{{sfn | von Falkenhausen | 1994 | p=132}} [[Ling (bell)|Clapper-bells]] made of pottery have been found in several archaeological sites.{{sfn|Huang|2002|pp=20–27}} The pottery bells later developed into metal bells. In West Asia, the first bells appear in 1000 BCE.{{sfn | von Falkenhausen | 1994 | p=132}} The earliest metal bells, with one found in the [[Taosi]] site and four in the [[Erlitou]] site, are dated to about 2000 BCE.{{sfn | von Falkenhausen | 1994 | pp=132, 329, 342|loc=Appendix I}} With the emergence of other kinds of bells during the [[Shang dynasty]] ({{circa|1600|1050 BCE}}), they were relegated to subservient functions; at Shang and [[Zhou dynasty|Zhou]] sites, they are also found as part of the horse-and-chariot gear and as collar-bells of dogs.{{sfn | von Falkenhausen | 1994 | p=134}} By the 13th century BCE, bells weighing over {{convert|150|kg|lb|abbr=off}} were being cast in China. After 1000 CE, iron became the most commonly used metal for bells instead of bronze. The earliest dated iron bell was manufactured in 1079, found in [[Hubei Province]].{{sfn | Rostoker | Bronson | Dvorak | 1984 | p=750}}

Bells west of China did not reach the same size until the 2nd millennium CE. Assyrian bells dated to the 7th century BCE were around 4 inches high. Roman bells dated to the 1st and 2nd century CE were around 8 inches high.{{sfn | Needham | 1962 | p=195}} The [[book of Exodus]] in the [[Bible]] notes that small gold bells were worn as ornaments on the hem of the robe of the [[High Priest of Israel|high priest]] in [[Jerusalem]].<ref>{{Bibleverse|Exodus|28:33–34|KJV}}</ref> Among the [[Classical Greece|ancient Greeks]], handbells were used in camps and garrisons and by patrols that went around to visit sentinels.{{sfn|National Cyclopaedia of Useful Knowledge|1874}} Among the Romans, the hour of bathing was announced by a bell. They also used them in the home, as an ornament and emblem, and bells were placed around the necks of cattle and sheep so they could be found if they strayed. As late as the 10th century CE, European bells were no higher than 2 feet in height.{{sfn | Needham | 1962 | p=195}}

== Styles of ringing ==
{{see also|Church bell#Design and ringing technique}}
[[File:Il est midi.webm|thumb|Static bells struck by [[solenoid]]-operated hammers in a bell-gable]]
[[File:English full circle bell mechanism.png|thumb|Mechanism of a bell hung for English full-circle ringing. The bell can swing through a full circle in alternate directions.]]
[[File:St bees bells in down position.JPG|thumb|English full-circle bells shown in the "down" position, in which they are normally left between ringing sessions]]
[[File:St Bees bells in up position.jpg|thumb|English full-circle bells shown in the "up" position]]
In the [[western world]], the common form of bell is a [[church bell]] or town bell, which is hung within a tower or bell cote. Such bells are either fixed in a static position ("hung dead") or mounted on a beam (the "headstock") so they can swing to and fro. Bells that are hung dead are normally sounded by hitting the sound bow with a hammer or occasionally by pulling an internal clapper against the bell.

A bell can be swung in a small arc with a rope and lever or higher with a rope and wheel. As it swings higher, the sound projects outward instead of downward. Larger bells may be swung using electric motors. In some places, such as the [[Salzburg Cathedral]], the clapper is held against the sound bow with an electric clasp as the bell swings up. The clasp would release the clapper to provide a cleaner start to ringing. To silence the bell, the clasp catches and locks the clapper back in place.<ref name=Glockenfampf />

Bells hung for [[full circle ringing]] are swung through just over a complete circle from mouth uppermost. A '''stay''' (the wooden pole seen sticking up when the bells are down) engages a mechanism to allow the bell to rest just past its balance point. The rope is attached to one side of a wheel so that a different amount of rope is wound on and off as it swings to and fro. The bells are controlled by ringers (one to a bell) in a chamber below, who rotate the bell through a full circle and back, and control the speed of oscillation when the bell is mouth upwards at the balance-point when little effort is required.

Swinging bells are sounded by an internal clapper. The clapper may have a longer period of swing than the bell. In this case, the bell will catch up with the clapper and if rung to or near full circle will carry the clapper up on the bell's trailing side. Alternatively, the clapper may have a shorter period and catch up with the bell's leading side, travel up with the bell, and come to rest on the downhill side. This latter method is used in English style full circle ringing.

{{anchor|muffles}}
<!-- This Anchor tag serves to provide a permanent target for incoming section links. Please do not remove it, nor modify it, except to add another appropriate anchor.  If you modify the section title, please anchor the old title. It is always best to anchor an old section header that has been changed so that links to it will not be broken. See [[Template:Anchor]] for details. This template is {{subst:Anchor comment}} -->
Occasionally the clappers have leather pads (called ''muffles'') strapped around them to quieten the bells when practice ringing to avoid annoying the neighbourhood. Also at funerals, ''half-muffles'' are often used to give a full open sound on one round, and a muffled sound on the alternate round for a distinctive, mournful effect. This was done at the [[Funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales]] in 1997.

A [[carillon]], which is a musical instrument consisting of at least 23 cast bronze cup-shaped bells, is tuned so that the bells can be played serially to produce a melody, or sounded together to play a chord. A traditional carillon is played by striking a baton keyboard with the fists, and by pressing the keys of a pedal keyboard with the feet. The keys mechanically activate levers and wires that connect to metal clappers that strike the inside of the bells, allowing the performer to vary the intensity of the note according to the force applied to the key.

== Church and temple bells ==
{{main|Church bell}}

In the [[Eastern world]], the traditional forms of bells are temple and palace bells, small ones being rung by a sharp rap with a stick, and very large ones rung by a blow from the outside by a large swinging beam. (See images of the great bell of [[Mii-dera]] below.)

The striking technique is employed worldwide for some of the largest tower-borne bells because swinging the bells themselves could damage their towers.

In the [[Roman Catholic Church]] and among some High [[Lutherans]] and [[Anglican]]s, small hand-held bells, called [[Sanctus]] or [[Altar bell|sacring bells]],{{sfn|Herrera|2004}} are often rung by a server at Mass when the priest holds high up first the host and then the chalice immediately after he has said the words of consecration over them (the moment known as the [[Elevation (liturgy)|Elevation]]). This serves to indicate to the congregation that the bread and wine have just been transformed into the Body and Blood of Christ (see [[transubstantiation]]), or, in the alternative [[Protestant Reformation|Reformation]] teaching, that Christ is now bodily present in the elements, and that what the priest is holding up for them to look at is Christ himself (see [[consubstantiation]]).

In [[Russian Orthodox bell ringing]], the entire bell never moves, only the clapper. A complex system of ropes is developed and used uniquely for every bell tower. Some ropes (the smaller ones) are played by hand, the bigger ropes are played by foot.

=== Bells in Japanese religion ===
[[File:Wind-powered bell under temple eaves,. Banna-ji. Ashikaga, Tochigi.jpg|thumb|Wind-powered bell under temple eaves, Banna-ji; [[Ashikaga, Tochigi]]]]
[[Japan]]ese [[Shinto]]ist and [[Buddhist]] bells are used in religious ceremonies. ''[[Suzui]]'', a homophone meaning both "cool" and "refreshing", are spherical bells which contain metal pellets that produce sound from the inside. The hemispherical bell is the ''[[Kane (musical instrument)|Kane]]'' bell, which is struck on the outside. Large suspended temple bells are known as ''[[bonshō]]''. (See also [[:ja:鈴]], [[:ja:梵鐘]]).

=== Bells in Jainism, Buddhism and Hinduism ===
[[Jainism|Jain]], [[Hinduism|Hindu]] and [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] bells, called ''"[[Ghanta]]"'' (IAST: Ghaṇṭā) in Sanskrit, are used in religious ceremonies. See also [[singing bowls]]. A bell hangs at the gate of many [[Hindu temple]]s and is rung at the moment one enters the temple.<ref name=hindus />
<gallery>
File:RyoanJi-Kane.jpg|Japanese temple bell of the Ryōanji Temple, [[Kyoto]]
File:Bell Simoda 1856.jpg|"Bell house at Shimoda" in Japan
File:Big bell. Rewalsar.jpg|Buddhist bell, [[Rewalsar, India|Rewalsar]], India
File:Bell Patan Durbar Square Mangal Bazaar Patan Lalitpur Nepal Rajesh Dhungana (3).jpg|Bell of Taleju Bhawani temple ([[Patan Durbar Square]], Nepal
</gallery>

== Bellfounding ==
{{Main|Bellfounding}}

The process of casting bells is called [[bellfounding]], and in Europe dates to the 4th or 5th century.{{sfn|Milham|1944|pp=313–318}} The traditional metal for these bells is a [[bronze]] of about 23% [[tin]].{{sfn|Cubberly|1989|pp=15–38}} Known as ''[[bell metal]]'', this alloy is also the [[cymbal alloys|traditional alloy]] for the finest Turkish and Chinese [[cymbal]]s. Other materials sometimes used for large bells include [[brass]] and [[iron]]. Steel was tried during the busy church-building period of mid-19th-century England, because it was more economical than bronze, but was found not to be durable and manufacture ceased in the 1870s.{{sfn|Jennings|1988|p=8}}

===Casting===
Small bells were originally made with the [[lost wax process]] but large bells are cast mouth downwards by filling the air space in a two-part mould with molten metal. Such a mould has an outer section clamped to a base-plate on which an inner core has been constructed.{{sfn|Jennings|1988|pp=3, 10}}

The core is built on the base-plate using porous materials such as [[Coke (fuel)|coke]] or brick and then covered in [[loam]] well mixed with straw and horse manure. This is given a profile corresponding to the inside shape of the finished bell and dried with gentle heat. [[Graphite]] and [[Calcium carbonate#Industrial applications|whiting]] are applied to form the final, smooth surface.

The outside of the mould is made within a perforated cast-iron case, larger than the finished bell, containing the loam mixture which is shaped, dried and smoothed in the same way as the core. The case is inverted (mouth down), lowered over the core and clamped to the base plate. The clamped mould is supported, usually by being buried in a ''casting pit'' to bear the weight of metal and to allow even cooling.{{sfn|Jennings|1988|p=11}}

Historically, before rail or road transport of large bells was possible, a "bell pit" was often dug in the grounds of the building where the bell was to be installed. Molten bell metal is poured into the mould through a box lined with [[Sand casting#Molding box and materials|foundry sand]]. The founder would bring his casting tools to the site, and a furnace would be built next to the pit.

===Bell tuning===
[[File:Erfurt Bell.png|thumb|The principal harmonics of the [[Maria Gloriosa|Erfurt bell]] (1497){{sfn|Starmer|1902|p=32}} typical of a harmonically-tuned bell:{{efn|name=Hemony}} strike note is E, with hum note an octave below, minor third, fifth, nominal above, and major third and perfect fifth in the second octave]]

{{wide image|Jonathan Harvey - Winchester Cathedral bell spectrum.png|800px|Spectrum of the tenor bell of [[Winchester Cathedral]] as analyzed by [[Jonathan Harvey (composer)|Jonathan Harvey]] using [[Fast Fourier transform|FFT]]{{efn|name=Roads}} "The bell produces a secondary pitch (f') which lies outside that 'inharmonic series though it is clearly audible when the bell is struck, 'to curiously thrilling and disturbing effect.'"{{sfn | Downes | 2009 | p=22}} {{audio|Jonathan Harvey - Winchester Cathedral bell spectrum.mid|Play approximation}} The strike tone is [[middle C]], the hum tone an octave below.}}

Large bells are generally around 80% copper and 20% tin ([[bell metal]]), which has been found empirically to give the most pleasant tone. However, the tone of a bell is mostly due to its shape. A bell is regarded as having a good tone when it is "in tune with itself".{{sfn|Fuller-Maitland|1910|p=615}} In western bell founding, this is known as "harmonic tuning" of a bell, which results in the bell's strongest harmonics being in harmony with each other and the strike note. This produces the brightest and purest sound, which is the attractive sound of a good bell. Much effort has been expended over the centuries to find the shape which will produce the harmonically tuned bell.

The accompanying musical staves show the series of harmonics which are generated when a bell is struck. The [[Erfurt bell]] is notable that it although it is an old bell, it is harmonically tuned, but was not typical of its time. [[Pieter and François Hemony]] in the 17th century reliably cast many bells for carillons of unequalled quality of tuning for the time, but after their death, their guarded trade secrets were lost, and not until the 19th century were bells of comparable tuning quality cast. It was only in modern times that repeatable harmonic tuning using a known scientific basis was achieved. The main partials (or harmonics) of a well-tuned bell are:

* hum note (an octave below the named note)
* strike tone (also called tap note or named note)
* tierce (a minor third above named note)
* quint (a fifth above named note)
* nominal (an octave above named note)

Further, less-audible, harmonics include the major third and a perfect fifth in the second octave above the named note.

This quest by various founders over centuries of bell founding has resulted in the development of an optimum profile for casting each size of a bell to give true harmonic tuning. Although bells are cast to accurate patterns, variations in casting mean that a final tuning is necessary as the shape of the bell is critical in producing the desired strike note and associated harmonics. Tuning is undertaken by clamping the bell on a large rotating table and using a cutting tool to remove metal. This is an iterative process in which metal is removed from certain parts of the bell to change certain harmonics. This process was made possible historically by the use of tuning forks to find sympathetic resonance on specific parts of a bell for the harmonic being tuned, but today electronic [[Electronic tuner#Strobe tuner|strobe tuners]] are normally used. To tune the strike note, the nominal or the strike note are tuned; the effect is usually the same because the nominal is one of the main partials that determines the tone of the strike note.{{sfn | Fletcher | Rossing | 2008 | p=685|ps=: Cites Schoofs et al., 1987 for major-third bell.}} The thickness of a church bell at its thickest part, called the "sound bow", is usually one thirteenth its diameter. If the bell is mounted as cast, it is called a "maiden bell".{{sfn | Beach | Rines | 1907 | p=602}}{{sfn |Encyclopedia Americana| 1918 | p=477}}

====Major third bell====
The traditional harmonically tuned bell has a minor third as a main harmonic. On the theory that western music in major keys may sound better on bells with a major third as a harmonic, production of bells with major thirds was attempted in the 1980s. Scientists at the Technical University in Eindhoven, using computer modelling, produced bell profiles which were cast by the Eijsbouts Bellfoundry in the Netherlands.{{sfn | Beach | Rines | 1907 | p=602}} They were described as resembling old Coke bottles{{sfn|Douglas|2002}} in that they had a bulge around the middle;<ref name=maj3 /> In 1999 a design without the bulge was announced.{{sfn | Rossing | 2000 | p=139}} However, the major bell concept has found little favour; most bells cast today are almost universally minor third bells.

== Use in clock chimes ==
[[File:Big Ben 2001-06-27.jpg|thumb|[[Big Ben]] in the [[Elizabeth Tower]] of the British [[Houses of Parliament]]]]
Bells are also associated with [[clock]]s, indicating the hour by the striking of bells. Indeed, the word ''clock'' comes from the [[Latin]] word ''Cloca'', meaning ''bell''. Bells in clock towers or [[bell tower]]s can be heard over long distances, which was especially important in the time when clocks were too expensive for widespread ownership.

In the case of clock towers and grandfather clocks, a particular sequence of tones may be played to distinguish between the hour, half-hour, quarter-hour, or other intervals. One common pattern is called "[[Westminster Quarters]]", a sixteen-note pattern named after the [[Palace of Westminster]] which popularized it as the measure used by [[Clock Tower, Palace of Westminster|Big Ben]].

== Notable bells ==
[[File:Tsar Kolokol with humans for perspective.JPG|thumb|right|The [[Tsar Bell]] with humans for perspective]][[File:CologneCathedralBell02.jpg|right|thumb|Petersglocke, [[Cologne Cathedral]], with person for scale]]
[[File:Bell of King Seongdeok.National Museum of Gyeongju.Korea.2018.P1410597.jpg|thumb|[[Bell of King Seongdeok]], [[Gyeongju National Museum]], South Korea]]
{{see also|List of heaviest bells}}
*The [[Great Bell of Dhammazedi]] (1484) may have been the largest bell ever made. It was lost in a river in [[Burma]] after being removed from a temple by the [[Portugal|Portuguese]] in 1608. It is reported to have weighed about {{convert|300|tonne}}.
*The [[Tsar Bell]] by the [[Motorins|Motorin Bellfounders]] is the largest bell still in existence. It weighs {{convert|160|tonne}}, but it was never rung and broke in 1737. It is on display in [[Moscow]], Russia, inside the [[Moscow Kremlin|Kremlin]].
*The Great [[Mingun Bell]] is the largest functioning bell. It is located in [[Mingun]], [[Burma]], and weighs {{convert|90|tonne|sigfig=1}}.
* The Gotenba Bell is the largest functioning swinging bell, weighing {{convert|79900|lb}}. It is located in a tourist resort in [[Gotenba, Shizuoka|Gotenba]], Japan. Hung in a freestanding frame, it is rung by hand. It was cast by [[Royal Eijsbouts bell foundry|Eijsbouts]] in 2006.
*The [[World Peace Bell (Newport, Kentucky)|World Peace Bell]] was the largest functioning swinging bell until 2006.{{citation needed|date=October 2019}} It is located in [[Newport, Kentucky|Newport]], Kentucky, [[United States]], and was cast by the [[Fonderie Paccard|Paccard Foundry]] of [[France]]. The bell itself weighs {{convert|66000|lb}}; with clapper and supports. The total weight which swings when the bell is rung is {{convert|89390|lb}}.
*The largest Bell of the [[People's Salvation Cathedral]] is the largest free-swinging church bell in the world, surpassing the [[Petersglocke]] of [[Cologne Cathedral]]. Weighing more than 25 tons, it was cast by the [[Grassmayr Bell Foundry]] on the 11th of November 2016 and has a height of 3,130&nbsp;mm, thickness of 273&nbsp;mm.
*The [[Bell of King Seongdeok]] is the largest extant bell in [[Korea]]. The full Korean name means "Sacred Bell of King Seongdeok the Great". It was also known as the Bell of Bongdeoksa Temple, where it was first housed. The bell weighs about 25&nbsp;tons and was originally cast in 771 CE. It is now stored in the National Museum of Gyeongju.
*[[Pummerin]] in [[Vienna]]'s [[Stephansdom]] is the most famous bell in [[Austria]] and the fifth largest in the world.{{citation needed|date=October 2019}}
*The [[St. Petersglocke]], in the [[Colognian dialect|local dialect]] of [[Cologne]] also called ''{{lang|ksh|dä Dicke Pitter}}'' ("Fat Peter"), is a bell in Germany's [[Cologne Cathedral]]. It weighs 24&nbsp;tons and was cast in 1922. It is the largest functioning free-swinging bell in the world that swings from its top. (The Gotenba Bell and the [[World Peace Bell]] swing around their [[center of gravity]], which is more like turning than swinging. So, depending on the point of view, the St. Petersglocke may be considered the largest free-swinging bell in the world.)
*Maria Dolens, the bell for the Fallen in [[Rovereto]], Italy, weighs 22.6&nbsp;tons.{{citation needed|date=October 2019}}
*The South West tower of [[St Paul's Cathedral]] in [[London]], England, houses [[Great Paul]], the second largest bell at 16.5&nbsp;tons in the British Isles. One can hear Great Paul booming out over Ludgate Hill at 1300 every day.
* The [[Olympic Bell]], commissioned and cast for the [[2012 Summer Olympics|2012 London Olympic Games]], is the largest harmonically-tuned bell in the world.
*[[Big Ben]] is the fourth-largest bell in the British Isles, after The Olympic Bell (used at the opening of the 2012 Olympic Games), Great Paul (St Paul's Cathedral, City of London) and Great George ([[Liverpool Cathedral]]). Big Ben is the hour bell of the Great Clock in the [[Elizabeth Tower]] (formerly called the Clock Tower) at the [[Palace of Westminster]], the Houses of [[Parliament of the United Kingdom|Parliament]].
*The [[Dom Tower]] in the city of Utrecht, the Netherlands, houses the Salvator, weighing 8.2 tons and cast in 1505 by Geert van Wou.
*[[Great Tom (bell)|Great Tom]] is the bell that hangs in [[Tom Tower]] (designed by [[Christopher Wren]]) of [[Christ Church, Oxford]]. It was cast in 1680 and weighs over 6&nbsp;tons. Great Tom is still rung 101 times at 21:05 every night to signify the 101 original scholars of the college.
*The [[Liberty Bell]] is a {{convert|2080|lb}}<ref name=libbell /> [[United States|American]] bell of great historic significance, located in [[Philadelphia]], [[Pennsylvania]]. It previously hung in [[Independence Hall]].
*[[Sigismund (bell)|Sigismund]] is a 12 tonne bell in the [[Wawel Cathedral]] in [[Kraków]], Poland, cast in 1520. It is rung only on very significant national occasions.
*The [[Maria Gloriosa]] in [[Erfurt Cathedral]], Germany, was cast by [[Geert van Wou]] in 1497, weighs more than 12,500&nbsp;kg (13 tons) and is the world's largest medieval free-swinging bell.<ref name=sacrdest />{{sfn|Starmer|1902|p=32}}
*The [[Lutine Bell]] is the [[ship's bell]] of the wrecked [[French frigate Lutine (1779)|HMS ''Lutine'']], weighs {{convert|106|lb}} and bears the inscription "ST. JEAN – 1779". It rests in the [[Lloyd's of London]] Underwriting Room, where it used to be struck when news of an overdue ship arrived—once for the loss of a ship (i.e., bad news, last in 1979), and twice for her return (i.e., good news, last in 1989).
*The tenor (heaviest bell) of the [[Liverpool Cathedral#Bells|change-ringing peal]] at Liverpool Cathedral is the heaviest bell hung for [[Change ringing|full-circle ringing]].

== Usage as musical instruments ==
[[File:Bienenkorbglocke.jpg|thumb|left|upright|A bell out of bronze with its principal tone at 1133 Hertz
[[File:Bienenkorbglocke.1133.Hz.ogg]]
]]

Some bells are used as [[musical instrument]]s, such as [[carillon]]s, (clock) [[chime (bell instrument)|chime]]s, [[agogô]], or ensembles of bell-players, called [[bell choir]]s, using hand-held bells of varying tones.{{efn|name=examples}} A "ring of bells" is a set of four to twelve or more bells used in [[change ringing]], a particular method of ringing bells in patterns. A [[peal]] in changing ringing may have bells playing for several hours, playing 5,000 or more patterns without a break or repetition. They have also been used in many kinds of [[popular music]], such as in [[AC/DC]]'s "[[Hells Bells (song)|Hells Bells]]" and [[Metallica]]'s "[[For Whom the Bell Tolls (Metallica song)|For Whom the Bell Tolls]]".

=== Ancient Chinese bells ===
[[File:VM 4721 Hubei Provincial Museum - bronze zheng bell.jpg|thumb|upright|A [[Warring States]]-era ''zheng'' (钲) bell from Baoshan 2 Tomb in [[Jingmen]], [[Hubei]]]]
{{main|Bianzhong}}

The ancient Chinese bronze chime bells called [[bianzhong]] or [http://www.uh.edu/engines/epi1676.htm zhong / zeng] (鐘) were used as polyphonic musical instruments and some have been dated at between 2000 and 3600 years old. Tuned bells have been created and used for musical performance in many cultures but ''Zhong'' are unique among all other types of cast bells in several respects and they rank among the highest achievements of Chinese bronze casting technology. However, the remarkable secret of their design and the method of casting—known only to the Chinese in antiquity—was lost in later generations and was not fully rediscovered and understood until the 20th century.

In 1978 a complete ceremonial set of 65 ''Zhong'' bells was found in a near-perfect state of preservation during the excavation of the [http://depts.washington.edu/chinaciv/archae/tmarmain.htm tomb] of [[Marquis Yi]], ruler of [[State of Zeng|Zeng]], one of the [[Warring States]]. Their special shape gives them the ability to produce [http://www.neuroscience-of-music.se/Zengbells.htm two different musical tones], depending on where they are struck. The interval between these notes on each bell is either a [[major third|major]] or [[minor third]], equivalent to a distance of four or five notes on a piano.{{sfn | Thorne | Raymond | 1989 | pp=166–167}}

The bells of Marquis Yi—which were still fully playable after almost 2500 years—cover a range of slightly less than five octaves but thanks to their dual-tone capability, the set can sound a complete 12-tone scale—predating the development of the European 12-tone system by some 2000 years—and can play melodies in [[diatonic]] and [[pentatonic]] scales.<ref name=china />

Another related ancient Chinese musical instrument is called [[Bianqing|qing]] ([https://web.archive.org/web/20060521073710/http://www.china.org.cn/chinese/ch-tw/pic1/e-3.htm 磬] [[pinyin]] qìng) but it was made of stone instead of metal.

In more recent times, the top of bells in China was usually decorated with a small dragon, known as ''[[pulao (dragon)|pulao]]''; the figure of the dragon served as a hook for hanging the bell.
[[File:Hawksbelleasttennmound.png|upright=.5|thumb|This copper bell was made by pre-Columbian North American natives.]]

===Konguro'o===
Konguro'o is a small bell which, like the [[Djalaajyn]], was first used for utilitarian purposes and only later for artistic ones. Konguro'o rang when moving to new places. They were fastened to the horse harnesses and created a very specific "smart" sound background. Konguro'o also hung on the neck of the leader goat, which the sheep herd followed. This led to the association in folk memory between the distinctive sound of konguro'o and the nomadic way of life.

To make this instrument, [[Kyrgyz people|Kyrgyz]] foremen used copper, bronze, iron and brass. They also decorated it with artistic carving and covered it with silver. Sizes of the instruments might vary within certain limits, what depended on its function. Every bell had its own timbre.

===Chimes===
A variant on the bell is the [[tubular bell]]. Several of these metal tubes which are struck manually with hammers, form an instrument named ''tubular bells'' or ''chimes''. In the case of wind or aeolian chimes, the tubes are blown against one another by the wind.

===Skrabalai===
The [[skrabalai]] is a traditional folk instrument in Lithuania which consists of wooden bells of various sizes hanging in several vertical rows with one or two wooden or metal small clappers hanging inside them. It is played with two wooden sticks. When the skrabalai is moved a clapper knocks at the wall of the trough. The pitch of the sound depends on the size of the wooden trough. The instrument developed from wooden [[cowbell]]s that shepherds would tie to cows' necks.

== Farm bells ==
Whereas the church and temple bells called to [[mass (liturgy)|mass]] or religious service, bells were used on [[farm]]s for more secular signalling. The greater farms in [[Scandinavia]] usually had a small bell-tower resting on the top of the [[barn]]. The bell was used to call the workers from the field at the end of the day's work.
[[File:Glasgow deid bell.jpg|thumb|upright|The [[Glasgow]] 'Dead or Deid bell' of 1642]]
In [[folk tradition]], it is recorded that each church and possibly several farms had their specific [[rhyme]]s connected to the sound of the specific bells. An example is the [[Pete Seeger]] and [[Idris Davies]] song "[[The Bells of Rhymney]]".

==Dead bell==
In Scotland, up until the nineteenth century, it was the tradition to ring a [[dead bell]], a form of handbell, at the death of an individual and at the funeral.{{Sfn|Adamson|1875|p=189}}

==Bell study and ringing organizations==
Numerous organizations promote the ringing, study, music, collection, preservation and restoration of bells,{{sfn | Rama | 1993 | pp=229–230}} including:
*[[American Bell Association International|The American Bell Association International]] (United States with foreign chapters)
*[[Central Council of Church Bell Ringers]] (worldwide) – promotes English style full circle change ringing
*[[The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America]] (Canada, Mexico, United States)

== Gallery ==
<gallery class="center">

File:Temple bell and clapper. Banna-ji. Ashikaga, Togichi.jpg|Temple bell and clapper. [[Banna-ji]]. Japan.
Image:Bell, Mingun, Myanmar.jpg|[[Mingun Bell]] weighs 55,555 [[viss]], or 90 [[tonne]]s.
Image:Libertybell alone small.jpg|[[Philadelphia]]'s [[Liberty Bell]].
Image:ZygmuntDzwon.JPG|The [[Sigismund (bell)|Zygmunt]] (Sigismund) Bell (from 1520) in [[Kraków]], Poland.
Image:WorldPeaceBell-Kentucky.jpg|The [[World Peace Bell]] in [[Kentucky]].
Image:Jingyun Bell.JPG|Bronze jingyun bell cast in the year 711 AD, [[Xi'an]].
Image:Wuhanbells.jpg|Chinese bells from the ancient [[Warring States]], [[Hubei]] Provincial Museum, [[Wuhan]], China.
Image:StUlrichGlocken13.JPG|St. Ulrich, [[Memmingen]]
File:Yongle Bell 01.jpg|Yongle Bell
File:Changchun-Temple-TaiQingDian-Bell-0306.jpg|A bell in Chang Chun Temple, [[Wuhan]], hanging on its ''[[pulao (dragon)|pulao]]''
File:St Cuileain Bell.JPG|[[Bell Shrine of St. Cuileáin|St Cuileain's Bell]] from Ireland, 7th-8th Century AD (British Museum)
File:PK - Bell with Saints Peter, Paul, John, and Thomas - Walters 5479 - View B.jpg|Bronze bell from the second half of the fourteenth century, depicting Saints Peter, Paul, John the Evangelist, and Thomas.
File:Glendale-Fire Bell-1912.jpg|Fire Bell, [[Glendale, Arizona|Glendale]], Arizona.
File:Chikanobu The Giant Bell.jpg|The bell as depicted in fine art: This [[triptych]] depicts [[Benkei]] carrying the giant bell of [[Mii-dera]] Buddhist temple up Hei-zan Mountain. – [[Chikanobu Toyohara]], {{circa|1890}}.

File:Miidera-no-bansho-M2075.jpg|This bell is called ''Mii-dera no Bansho'' (三井寺の晩鐘), the evening bell at [[Mii-dera]], a [[Buddhism|Buddhist]] [[temple]] in [[Ōtsu, Shiga|Otsu]], which is near [[Lake Biwa]] in [[Shiga Prefecture]], Japan. This image shows the hanging wooden beam positioned to strike the outer side of the resonating surface.
</gallery>

== See also ==
{{Further|Index of campanology articles}}
{{div col|colwidth=23em}} 
* [[American Bell Association International]]
* [[Bellhop]]
* [[Bicycle bell]]
* [[Bermuda carriage bell]]
* [[Cat bell]]
* [[Cowbell]]
* [[Doorbell]]
* [[Division bell]]
* [[Electric bell]]
* [[Electronic tuner]]s, used to tune bells
* [[Glockenspiel]]
* [[Handbell]]
* [[National Bell Festival]]
* [[John Taylor & Co|John Taylor Bellfounders]]
* [[School bell]]
* [[Ship's bell]]
* [[Suzu (bell)|Suzu]]
* [[Train bell]]
* [[Veronese bellringing art]]
* [[Whitechapel Bell Foundry]]
{{div col end}}

==References==
===Notes===
{{notelist|refs=

{{efn|name=Hemony|{{harvnb|Fuller-Maitland|1910|p=615}} notes the strike note shown on C. [[Pieter and François Hemony|Hemony]] appears to be the first to propose this tuning.}}

{{efn|name=Roads|{{harvnb|Roads|1992|p=92}} states "a clearly audible, slow-decaying partial at 347 Hz with a beating component in it. It is a resultant of the various F harmonic series partials that can be clearly seen in the spectrum (5, [6], 7, 9, 11, 13, 17, etc.) beside the C-related partials".}}

{{efn|name=examples|Examples of carillons can be found here: {{cite web|url=http://musiconis.huma-num.fr/recherche_simple/results.html?query=carillon|title=Carillon|website=Musiconis Database|publisher=[[Université Paris-Sorbonne]]|access-date=2021-10-05}} }}

}}

===Citations===
{{Reflist|refs=

<ref name=oed1>{{citation |title=Oxford English Dictionary|edition=1st  |contribution=bell, ''n.<sup>1</sup>'' |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |location=Oxford |date=1887 }}</ref>

<ref name=oed4>{{citation |title=Oxford English Dictionary|edition=1st |contribution=bell, ''v.<sup>4</sup>'' |publisher=Oxford University Press |location=Oxford |date=1887 }}</ref>

<ref name=Glockenfampf>{{youTube|id=0t7YCQvRYsA|title=Salzburg (Austria) The bells of Salzburg cathedral}}</ref>

<ref name=hindus>{{cite web|title=Why do Hindus ring bell in temple|date=6 January 2014|url=http://www.sanskritimagazine.com/rituals_and_practices/why-do-hindus-ring-the-bell-in-temple/#|access-date=4 March 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150312182415/http://www.sanskritimagazine.com/rituals_and_practices/why-do-hindus-ring-the-bell-in-temple|archive-date=12 March 2015}}</ref>

<ref name=maj3>{{cite web|url=http://www.andrelehr.nl/woboek/f_56.htm |title=Major third bell|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071018230102/http://www.andrelehr.nl/woboek/f_56.htm |archive-date=2007-10-18 |website=Andrelehr.nl}}</ref>

<ref name=libbell>{{Cite web |title       = The Liberty Bell |publisher   =[[National Park Service]]|url         = http://www.nps.gov/inde/planyourvisit/upload/english.pdf |access-date  = 2010-08-11 |url-status     = dead |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20101130163656/http://www.nps.gov/inde/planyourvisit/upload/english.pdf |archive-date = 2010-11-30}}</ref>

<ref name=sacrdest>{{cite web|url=http://www.sacred-destinations.com/germany/erfurt-dom-cathedral |website=Sacred destinations|title= Erfurt Cathedral|access-date= 19 October 2019}}</ref>

<ref name=china>{{cite web|url=http://arts.cultural-china.com/en/30Arts391.html |website=Cultural China |title=Bronze Chime Bells of Marquis Yi|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110203021322/http://arts.cultural-china.com/en/30Arts391.html |archive-date=2011-02-03 }}</ref>

}}

===Sources===
{{refbegin|2|indent=yes}}
* {{cite book|last=Adamson|first= Archibald |date=1875|title=Rambles Round Kilmarnock|location= Kilmarnock |publisher= [[T. Stevenson]]}}
* {{cite book | last1=Beach | first1=F.C. | last2=Rines | first2=G.E. | title=The Americana: A Universal Reference Library, Comprising the Arts and Sciences, Literature, History, Biography, Geography, Commerce, Etc., of the World | work=[[Scientific American]] | year=1907 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PNkXAQAAIAAJ&pg=PT602 }}
*{{cite book |title=Tool and manufacturing engineers handbook |last= Cubberly |first= William H. |editor=Bakerjian, Ramon |year=1989 |publisher=Society of Manufacturing Engineers |location=Dearborn, MI |isbn=978-0-87263-351-3 |chapter=Metals }}
* {{cite book | title=The Encyclopedia Americana: A Library of Universal Knowledge | publisher=[[Encyclopedia Americana Corporation]] | volume=3 | year=1918 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d2IMAAAAYAAJ&pg=PA477 | ref={{sfnref |Encyclopedia Americana|1918}} }}
*{{cite book |title=Bell Founding |last=Jennings |first=Trevor |year=1988 |publisher=Shire |location=Princes Risborough, England |isbn=0-85263-911-2 |page=8 }}
*{{cite web|first=Marietta |last=Douglas|date= June 2002|title=What is a Carillon?|url=http://www.cs.yale.edu/~douglas-craig/bells/Basic/what-is-a-carillon.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160504210104/http://www.cs.yale.edu/homes/douglas-craig/bells/Basic/what-is-a-carillon.pdf|archive-date=2016-05-04}}
* {{cite book | last=Downes | first=Michael | title=Jonathan Harvey : Song offerings and White as jasmine | publisher=Burlington, VT Ashgate | publication-place=Farnham, England | year=2009 | isbn=978-0-7546-6022-4 | oclc=319321762}}
* {{cite book | last1=Fletcher | first1=N.H. | last2=Rossing | first2=T. | title=The Physics of Musical Instruments | publisher=[[Springer New York]]| year=2008 | isbn=978-0-387-98374-5 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9CRSRYQlRLkC&pg=PA685}}
*{{cite book|first=John Alexander |last=Fuller-Maitland |date=1910|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2-e2AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA615 |title=Grove's dictionary of music and musicians|publisher=[[Macmillan Publishers|Macmillan]]}}
*{{Cite EB9 |last= Haweis |first= Hugh Reginald  |author-link= Hugh Reginald Haweis |wstitle=Bell|pages=536–539|volume=3|short=x}}
*{{citation|last=Herrera|first=Matthew D.|title=Sanctus Bells: Their History and Use in the Catholic Church|location=San Luis Obispo|publisher=Tixlini Scriptorium|date= 2004|url=http://www.ewtn.com/library/liturgy/sanctusbells.pdf |access-date=2011-09-26 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110604204441/http://www.ewtn.com/library/liturgy/sanctusbells.pdf |archive-date=2011-06-04 }}
*{{cite journal|last=Huang|first= Houming|title=Prehistoric Music Culture of China|journal=Cultural Relics of Central China|date= 2002|issue= 3|pages=18–27|issn=1003-1731<!-- NOTE: this ISSN refers both to the Chinese language and the English language versions of "Cultural Relics of Central Plains". -->}}
* {{cite book|last=Milham|first= Willis Isbister|date=1944|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wso8AAAAIAAJ|title=Time and Timekeepers: Including the History, Construction, Care, and Accuracy of Clocks and Watches|location=New York|publisher= [[Macmillan Publishers (United States)|Macmillan]]|oclc=23271006}}
*{{cite book|title=The National Cyclopaedia of Useful Knowledge|volume= III|date=1847|location= London|publisher= Charles Knight|page=126|ref={{sfnref|National Cyclopaedia of Useful Knowledge|1874}} }}
* {{cite book | last=Needham | first=J. | title=Science and Civilisation in China | publisher=Cambridge University Press | series=Physics and physical technology | year=1962 | isbn=978-0-521-05802-5 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oJ9nayZZ2oEC&pg=PA195 | access-date=2021-10-20}}
* {{cite book | author=Rama | title=Cloches de France et d'ailleurs | publisher=[[Le Temps apprivoise]] | publication-place=Paris | year=1993 | isbn=2-283-58158-3 | oclc=414929215 | language=fr}}
*{{cite journal|editor-last1=Roads |editor-first1=Curtis |year=1992 |title=The Music Machine: Selected Readings from Computer Music Journal|journal=Computer Music Journal |isbn=978-0-262-68078-3}}
*{{cite EB1911|wstitle=Bell|volume = 3| pp= 687–691|first=Hugh Munro|last=Ross}}
* {{cite book | last=Rossing | first=Thomas | title=Science of percussion instruments | publisher=[[World Scientific]] | publication-place=Singapore River Edge, N.J | year=2000 | isbn=978-981-02-4158-2 | oclc=45679450}}
* {{cite journal | last1=Rostoker | first1=William | last2=Bronson | first2=Bennet | last3=Dvorak | first3=James | title=The Cast-Iron Bells of China | journal=Technology and Culture | publisher=The Johns Hopkins University Press | volume=25 | issue=4 | year=1984 | issn=0040-165X | doi=10.2307/3104621 | page=750|jstor=3104621| s2cid=112143315 }}
*{{cite journal|first=W. W. |last=Starmer|date=1902|title=Bells and Bell Tones |pages= 25–44|journal=[[Proceedings of the Musical Association]]|volume=28th Session|jstor=765451}}
* {{cite book | last1=Thorne | first1=A. | last2=Raymond | first2=R. | title=Man on the Rim: The Peopling of the Pacific | publisher=[[Angus & Robertson]] | year=1989 | isbn=978-0-207-16246-6 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=d1FsQgAACAAJ}}
* {{cite book | last=von Falkenhausen | first=L. | title=Suspended Music: Chime-Bells in the Culture of Bronze Age China | publisher=[[University of California Press]] | year=1994 | isbn=978-0-520-91107-9 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ve1h53NTNW0C&pg=PA132}}
{{refend}}

===Further reading===
{{refbegin}}
* Fadul, Jose A. ''Fadul's Encyclopedia of Bells''. 2015. Lulu Press. {{ISBN|978-131-260-110-9}}
* [[James Murdoch (Scottish journalist)|Murdoch]], James. (1903). [https://books.google.com/books?id=Y2QPgpz17DUC ''A History of Japan.''] London: Paul, Trench, Trubner. [re-issued by [[Routledge]], London, 1996. {{ISBN|978-0-415-15416-1}}
* [[Richard Ponsonby-Fane|Ponsonby-Fane]], Richard A. B. (1956). ''Kyoto: The Old Capital of Japan, 794–1869.'' Kyoto: The Ponsonby Memorial Society.
*Spencer, Ann ''"And round me rings": bell tales and folklore''. Toronto: Tundra, 2003 {{ISBN|0-88776-597-1}}
*{{cite book|author1-link=Isaac Titsingh|last1=Titsingh|first1= Isaac|date=1834| url=https://books.google.com/books?id=18oNAAAAIAAJ| title=Annales des empereurs du Japon|location=  Paris|publisher= [[Royal Asiatic Society|Oriental Translation Fund of Great Britain and Ireland]]}} {{cite book|author=Siyun-sai Rin-siyo|author-link=Hayashi Gahō|date=1652|title=Nipon o daï itsi ran|title-link=Nipon o daï itsi ran}}
* Willis, Stephen Charles. ''Bells through the Ages: from the Percival Price Collection'' = ''Les Cloches à travers les siècles: provenant du fonds Percival Price''. Ottawa: National Library of Canada, 1986. 34 p., ill. with b&w photos. ''N.B''.: Prepared on the occasion of an exhibition of the same title, based on the collection of bell and carillon related material and documentation, of former Dominion [[Carillonneur]] (of Canadian Parliament, Ottawa), Percival Price, held at the National Library of Canada (as then named), 12 May to 14 Sept. 1986; some copies come with the guide to the taped dubbings of the recordings played as background music to the displays, as technically prepared by Gilles Saint-Laurent and listed by Stephen Charles Willis, both of the library's Music Division; English and French texts respectively divided into upper and lower portions of each page. {{ISBN|0-662-54295-9}}
{{refend}}

== External links ==
{{commons category|Bells}}
{{wiktionary|bell}}
{{CE1913 poster|Bells}}
* [https://trendvisionz.com/mindfullness/what-do-bells-symbolize-spiritually-unveiling-the-divine-resonance/ What Do Bells Symbolize Spiritually]
* [http://www.towerbells.org/data/GBGreatBells.html Tower Bells]
* [http://www.soinumapa.net/tag/kanpaiak-bells-campanas/?lang=en Bell recordings of the Basque Country]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20140415072041/http://www.aragob.es/edycul/patrimo/etno/tesiscampanas/indice.htm 'Bells in Aragón: a traditional means of communication' thesis (Spanish)]
* [https://washingtonringingsociety.org/galleries/animations Animation of English Full-circle ringing]
* [http://olympicopeningceremony.tumblr.com/tagged/stage2 Videos of the London Olympic bell being cast, tuned and installed.]

{{Bells|state=expanded}}
{{Vessel percussion idiophones}}
{{Percussion}}
{{Authority control}}

{{Portal bar|Music}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bell (Instrument)}}
[[Category:Articles containing video clips]]
[[Category:Asian percussion instruments]]
[[Category:Bells (percussion)| ]]
[[Category:Campanology]]
[[Category:Chinese inventions]]
[[Category:European percussion instruments]]
[[Category:Hand percussion]]
[[Category:Idiophones struck directly]]
[[Category:Kyrgyz musical instruments]]
[[Category:Percussion instruments used as both pitched and unpitched]]