Selmeston, St MarySelmeston has a hemispherical chime of 5 bells, hung in a west facing belfry. The church was rebuilt in 1867 to Ewan Christian's design, capped with a much smaller spire. It retains most of its predecessor's 13th - 14th century features, including the boarded belfry. The former belfry had small openings immediately below the base of the spire.
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The Bells
Bell |
Weight |
Diameter |
Nominal |
Note |
Founder |
Cast |
Canon |
Hanging |
1 |
0-2-15 cwt |
16.13" |
1327.5 Hz |
E |
1867 |
Dead |
||
2 |
0-2-24 cwt |
17.11" |
1183.5 Hz |
D |
1867 |
Dead |
||
3 |
0-3-7 cwt |
18.48" |
1078 Hz |
C |
1867 |
Dead |
||
4 |
1-1-8 cwt |
23.20" |
791.5 Hz |
G |
1867 |
Dead |
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5 |
2-2-25 cwt |
31.00" |
521 Hz |
C |
1867 |
Flat |
Dead |
5 Bells, 2-2-25 in C (Tuning 1-3,6,10 of 10)
A church is mentioned in the Domsday book of 1086 in the land of Count Robert of Mortain, and may have had a tower.
The old church had a single bell cast by Joseph Hatch in 1603. Joseph was a prolific founder who cast a large number of bells in Kent, with some of his work crossing the border into Sussex. His tomb is located in the churchyard of Broomfield, St Margaret, Kent.
There is very little variation in his inscriptions, and since the treble at Udimore is inscribed in lowercase, we have no choice but to replicate the inscription Tyssen's gives exactly as it is.
The inscription would have no doubt been cast in wax, and then stuck on the model. All the words were cast as one rather than using separate moulds for each letter.
A church is mentioned in the Domsday book of 1086 in the land of Count Robert of Mortain, and may have had a tower.
The old church had a single bell cast by Joseph Hatch in 1603. Joseph was a prolific founder who cast a large number of bells in Kent, with some of his work crossing the border into Sussex. His tomb is located in the churchyard of Broomfield, St Margaret, Kent.
There is very little variation in his inscriptions, and since the treble at Udimore is inscribed in lowercase, we have no choice but to replicate the inscription Tyssen's gives exactly as it is.
The inscription would have no doubt been cast in wax, and then stuck on the model. All the words were cast as one rather than using separate moulds for each letter.
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The old church (right) was demolished in 1867 in a single day by 4 sailors, and the bell was no doubt scrapped, or sent to London to help make the new bells.
Mears & Stainbank of Whitechapel supplied Selmeston with a hemispherical chime of 5 bells. It is the only tower in Sussex to hold more that 1 hemispherical bell in it. Only the tenor is inscribed, with the inscription created by pressing letter stamps into the outer mould. There are only 4 other hemispherical bells in the county, aside from the thousands of miniature ones in domestic clocks. Unusually, the bells are stacked so that the smaller bells are above the larger bells. In most cases, the smaller bells are stacked inside. Together, their notes form a clock chime with the hour bell an octave below the 3rd bell. |
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The bells are mounted stationary on a square pole and struck using counterweighted, external hammers. The chiming hammers are lifted by a chime barrel, made by St Leonard on Sea clockmaker John Murray. Unfortunately, the engraving "Murray / St Leonards on Sea" on one of the plates is becoming illegible.
The barrel and its pins were cast as a single unit, and were designed to chime the Cambridge quarters, and a musical combination for 3 bells. The tenor is rung using an independent rope rather than being operated by the barrel. |
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Chime Sequence
1 2 3 4 3 1 2 4 3 2 1 3 1 3 2 424 2 1 3 1 2 3 2 3 1 2 3 1 2 1 3 | ||
Interestingly, an extra pin was cast into the barrel between two of the notes, causing them to sound close together. The combination of bells following the Cambridge chimes is not a bell-ringing method (a tune played according to the rules of English change ringing) but rather a simple musical arrangement.
The chime barrel is operated from the ground floor using a wooden, hand-powered crank apparatus.
So, why are hemispherical bells so useful?
They have the advantage of producing a deeper tone to that of a traditional bell of the same diameter. Their deeper tone results from the thinness of the bells. For example, the treble has a thickness of 3.9%, and the tenor 2.62%, whereas the thickness of a normal bell is usually between 6 - 9%. They usually have an octave hum with a minor third tierce, though often slightly flat. They're stackable and take up less room, and are overall cheaper due to less metal required to make them.
Hemispherical bells have 3 main partial tones (Hum Tierce Nominal) as opposed to 5 like that of a conventional bell. This is undoubtably due to the fact that they're of equal thickness with no thickened soundbow, and their simple curved profile.
Belfry accessed by a ladder around 35ft, though we ascended using a scaffolding tower.
5 bells in good condition.
Visited: 27/11/2024 with Bill Hibbert, Stephen Beckingham, and Peter Blee.
The chime barrel is operated from the ground floor using a wooden, hand-powered crank apparatus.
So, why are hemispherical bells so useful?
They have the advantage of producing a deeper tone to that of a traditional bell of the same diameter. Their deeper tone results from the thinness of the bells. For example, the treble has a thickness of 3.9%, and the tenor 2.62%, whereas the thickness of a normal bell is usually between 6 - 9%. They usually have an octave hum with a minor third tierce, though often slightly flat. They're stackable and take up less room, and are overall cheaper due to less metal required to make them.
Hemispherical bells have 3 main partial tones (Hum Tierce Nominal) as opposed to 5 like that of a conventional bell. This is undoubtably due to the fact that they're of equal thickness with no thickened soundbow, and their simple curved profile.
Belfry accessed by a ladder around 35ft, though we ascended using a scaffolding tower.
5 bells in good condition.
Visited: 27/11/2024 with Bill Hibbert, Stephen Beckingham, and Peter Blee.
Recordings of the bells:
How the bells are tuned in relation to their nominal, using Simpson's theory.
Key [measured in cents]:
-99 ~ -90 -89 ~ -80 -79 ~ -70 -69 ~ -60 -59 ~ -50 -49 ~ -40 -39 ~ -30 -29 ~ -20 -19 ~ -10 -9 ~ -0
0 ~ 9 10 ~ 19 20 ~ 29 30 ~ 39 40 ~ 49 50 ~ 59 60 ~ 69 70 ~ 79 80 ~ 89 90 ~ 99+
-99 ~ -90 -89 ~ -80 -79 ~ -70 -69 ~ -60 -59 ~ -50 -49 ~ -40 -39 ~ -30 -29 ~ -20 -19 ~ -10 -9 ~ -0
0 ~ 9 10 ~ 19 20 ~ 29 30 ~ 39 40 ~ 49 50 ~ 59 60 ~ 69 70 ~ 79 80 ~ 89 90 ~ 99+
Bell 1
Hum - 320Hz - Eb+49
Tierce - 767.5Hz - G-36 (minor 2nd)
Nominal - 1327.5Hz - E+12
S*Quint - 1987.5Hz - B+10
O*Nominal - 2744Hz - F-30
Tierce - 767.5Hz - G-36 (minor 2nd)
Nominal - 1327.5Hz - E+12
S*Quint - 1987.5Hz - B+10
O*Nominal - 2744Hz - F-30
| selmestonone.mp3 |
Bell 2
Hum - 307.5Hz - Eb-19
Tierce - 704Hz - F+14 (minor 3rd)
Nominal - 1183.5Hz - D+13
S*Quint - 1742Hz - A-17
O*Nominal - 2376.5Hz - D+20
Tierce - 704Hz - F+14 (minor 3rd)
Nominal - 1183.5Hz - D+13
S*Quint - 1742Hz - A-17
O*Nominal - 2376.5Hz - D+20
| selmestontwo.mp3 |
Bell 3
Hum - 267Hz - C+35
Tierce - 628Hz - Eb+16 (minor 3rd)
Nominal - 1078Hz - C# -48
S*Quint - 1600Hz - G+35
O*Nominal - 2198.5Hz - C# -14
Tierce - 628Hz - Eb+16 (minor 3rd)
Nominal - 1078Hz - C# -48
S*Quint - 1600Hz - G+35
O*Nominal - 2198.5Hz - C# -14
| selmestonthree.mp3 |
Bell 4
Hum - 194.5Hz - G-12
Tierce - 461.5Hz - Bb-16 (minor 3rd)
Nominal - 791.5Hz - G+17
S*Quint - 1173.5Hz - D-1
O*Nominal - 1605Hz - G+40
Tierce - 461.5Hz - Bb-16 (minor 3rd)
Nominal - 791.5Hz - G+17
S*Quint - 1173.5Hz - D-1
O*Nominal - 1605Hz - G+40
| selmestonfour.mp3 |
Bell 5
Hum - 120.5Hz - B-41
Tierce - 295.5Hz - D+11 (major 2nd)
Nominal - 521Hz - C-6
S*Quint - 784Hz - G+0
O*Nominal - 1080.5Hz - C# -44
Tierce - 295.5Hz - D+11 (major 2nd)
Nominal - 521Hz - C-6
S*Quint - 784Hz - G+0
O*Nominal - 1080.5Hz - C# -44
| selmestonfive.mp3 |
Inscriptions:
1 |
Uninscribed |
2 |
Uninscribed |
3 |
Uninscribed |
4 |
Uninscribed |
5 |
MEARS & STAINBANK, FOUNDERS, LONDON, 1867. |
Old Bell |
Ioseph hatch made me 1603 |
Photographs:
*Click on the images to enlarge them*
Sources:
- TYSSEN, Amhurst. D (1864): The Church Bell of Sussex
- https://sussexparishchurches.org/church/selmeston-dedication-unknown/
