Technical Description of a Church Bell
Technical Description + Technical Poem
Writing for Engineers [ENGL 210.07 – E [25074]]
Spring 2018
Professor Maryam Alikhani
The City College of the City University of New York
Due: 16 April 2018
Word Count: 1,643
Haresh Mohabir
Table of Contents
- Poem ……………………………………………………………………………………………3
- Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………..4
- Technical Description of a Church Bell………………..…………………………………………5
3.1 Yoke/Headstock…………………………………………………………….……….….5
3.2 Canons……………………………………………………………………………….…6
3.3 Crown ……………………………………………………………………………….…6
3.4 Shoulder………………………………………………………………………….……7
3.5 Waist……………………………………………………………………………………7
3.6 Sound Bow………………………………………………………………………………7
3.7 Lip………………………………………………………………………………………8
3.8 Mouth…………………………………………………………………………………..8
3.9 Clapper………………………………………………………………………………….8
3.10 Exercise…………………………………………………………………….…………8
3.11 Bead Line………………………………………………………………………………9
- Conclusion…………………………………………………………………………………..….9
- References………………………………………………………………………………………10
Hung from a Headstock
I was born in AD 400
That very year I wanted to die
They have hurt me
Knocked me back and forth
Struck me with all of their might
Gave me an everlasting headache
I have gone deaf
But I can still hear the divine calling of me
I stay strong
Yet, I am cracking
Stop!
I cannot take it anymore
The sounds I make are not unheard!
Help me!
They rattle my uvula
I vomit my sounds to all
Save me!
Evolve who I am
End my pain and suffering
-Haresh Mohabir
Introduction:
Mounted high in a tower at the peak of a religious structure is where its sound can be heard by the surrounding community. It is a familiar sound that draws attention to all and is used for a plethora of purposes in the Church. Church bells were introduced into the Christian Church in AD 400 by Saint Paulinus of Nola. They became common in Europe by the early Middle Ages (1400-1500 AD) (“Church Bell”, n.d.). This large, hollow object is made of metal and has the shape of a reversed cup widening at the lip, that sounds a musical note when struck by the clapper (“The World’s Favorite Online Dictionary!”, n.d.). The main purpose of ringing Church bells were to call worshippers to gather for Church services. There are a variety of religions that ring the bell three times a day, on a timely schedule. However, the messages behind ringing the bell may differ. For example, Catholics believe that the bell drives out evil spirits and symbolizes the presences of God (The Church and the Middle Ages, n.d.). This spiritual value of the bell provides great significance for the Church bell to be an integral part of the Church. It is important to understand the different parts of a Church bell to analyze how the bell actually works and how the description of its parts relate to ourselves.
Figure 1: An image of a Christian Church with two Church bells.
(“History of Church Bells”, n.d.).
Technical Description of a Church Bell:
To create a functioning and authentic Church bell, there are ten parts that must be put together. These parts include the yoke, or headstock, canons, crown, shoulder, waist, sound bow, lip, mouth, clapper, and bead line (Audet, M., n.d.). Some of these parts may seem oddly familiar. Perhaps some of them are on your body right now! When designing “something,” humans tend to give the object human body part names. It is unlikely that people ever care to think that everyday tools were personified by their creators (“Library: Church Bells.”, n.d.). Humans describe objects using the names of things that are already familiar to the common people. That is the only way that a person can truly understand the use for a part or what it is. With this knowledge and new way of thinking, naming something may not be so difficult because the name is already in our environment.
Figure 2: A diagram of the different parts of the bell labeled 1 through 10. (“Bell”, n.d.)
- Yoke/Headstock:
The title of my poem was the very first clue to help you find out what I was naming in my dark poem. As aforementioned, a Church bell is hung from a headstock. According to a bell manufacturer, “Hollow box section cast iron headstocks give excellent rigidity to weight ratios and have proved to be very durable. In special cases, if customers request it, we do supply headstocks made from galvanised steel or hardwood.” (“Change Ringing Bells”, n.d.). Therefore, the headstock must be strong enough not to bend or snap in accordance with the overall weight of the bell. The headstock keeps the bell in place and provides a strong structure. The compound word, “headstock,” breaks down to two words, “head” and “stock.” For the purpose of describing the function of the headstock, lets analyze the “head” in “headstock.” According to an online dictionary, a head is the upper part of the body in humans.” (“The World’s Favorite Online Dictionary!”, n.d.). Therefore, the headstock contains this key word because it the upper part of the bell system.
- Canons:
The canons are the part of the bell by which it is suspended. The canons connect the headstock to the bell and is often called the “ear” (“Change Ringing Bells”, n.d.). Once again, we see a connection between bells and the human body. By describing the canons as the ear of the bell, I can visualize a small child getting pulled by his ear by his mother. In this scenario, the headstock is the mother while the bell is the child.
- Crown:
The crown is located between the canons and the shoulder of the bell. The crown is the beginning of its inverted cup shape and allows the bell to be hung. During the high Middle Ages, the Roman Catholic Church gained strong power and influence with the pope as the head in Western Europe (The Church and the Middle Ages, n.d.). The supreme power of the pope is equivalent to him wearing the crown, being King (“What Is the Origin and Purpose of Church Bells?”. (2018). Thus, there is a connection between the very start of the bell and the head of the Church.
- Shoulder:
The shoulder gives the bell a smooth curve shape. The shoulder on the human body is smooth as well and leads to the trunk of the body where the next part of the bell is located. The trunk of the bell includes the waist and sound bow.
- Waist:
The waist of the bell increases in radius from the shoulder. This increase in radius gives the bell its large shape. According to an online dictionary, it is “The part of the body in humans between the ribs and the hips.” (“The World’s Favorite Online Dictionary!”, n.d.). The waist is the expanding part of our body. Similarly, the waist of the bell flares out to create the traditional Church bell shape.
- Sound Bow:
When this part of the bell is struck, the bell produces its sounds. The sound bow is thick because it is made to be struck often and it must be strong to withstand the force of the clapper of hammer (Audet, M., n.d.). There are a variety of instruments played using a bow. In fact, the bell is an instrument, however, the bow is a metal face, not thread or thin steel wire.
- Lip:
The lip is the edge around the mouth of the hollow bell. As described before, the shape of the bell is an inverted cup. On the lip of the cup is where we place our lips to drink from the cup. As the two lips touch, I am surprised that there are no romantic feelings evoked. Unfortunately, the lip of the bell never gets intimate with that of another bell.
- Mouth:
The mouth is the circular shape created by the lip and deepened by the hollowness of the bell on the bottom. It is the opening of the bell and is where the sounds of the bell are emitted. This can obviously be compared to our human bodies because we use our mouth to emit speech and other sounds.
- Clapper:
The clapper is a very crucial part of the bell system. It is a free-swinging piece of metal that strikes the sound bow to produce a sound which is amplified by the shape and mouth of the bell (“Church Bell”, n.d.). Without the clapper and a force to set it in motion, the bell will produce no sound. The clapper is also known as the tongue of a bell.
Exercise:
- Open your mouth
- Emit a sound through your mouth
- Hold up your tongue so that it is suspended between your cheeks.
- Now, emit the same sound through your mouth while simultaneously swaying your tongue from cheek to cheek.
- Notice the difference in the sound you hear in step 2 from that in step 4.
- Did your tongue perform as a clapper in a bell?
10. Bead Line:
This is a raised line around the bell that is both decorative and functional. (Audet, M., n.d.). It is not clear as to what the functional aspect of the bead line is to the bell. However, as aforementioned, this part will be useful to create an authentic Church bell whose decorative features are related to that of the Middle Ages.
Conclusion:
Overall, the several parts of the Church bell work together to create a functioning and authentic device that is still used today by means of religious callings. The Church bell is a useful tool to call upon worshippers of many faiths. However, the bell itself has many applications in other aspects of society. For example, the bell can be used to warn villagers of an invasion. Therefore, the bell has emergency uses and the functionality of it is important at these times of danger of distress. There are multiple ways to alter the bell system to produce different sounds. For example, the material used to create the bell, the size of the clapper, and its shape of the waist can all influence how the bell sounds. The future of the Church bell, which is present today, is an electromagnetic hammer to initiate the movement of the bell and clapper (“Bells”, n.d.). As long as there is religion, a strong aspect of our culture, I believe that the Church bell will never become obsolete. Let the Church bells keep ringing.
References
Audet, Marye. “Antique Farm Bells.” LoveToKnow, LoveToKnow Corp, 1 Apr. 2018, Retrieved
from antiques.lovetoknow.com/antique-farm-bells.
“Bell.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 1 Apr. 2018, Retrieved from
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bell.
“Bells”– Smith of Derby, 1 Apr. 2018, Retrieved from www.smithofderby.com/products/bells/.
“Change Ringing Bells.” Change Ringing Bells | John Taylor & Co, 1 Apr. 2018, Retrieved from
www.taylorbells.co.uk/web/?q=node%2F34.
“Church Bell.” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 1 Apr. 2018, Retrieved from
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_bell.
GotQuestions.org. “What Is the Origin and Purpose of Church Bells?” GotQuestions.org, 21 Feb.
2018, 1 Apr. 2018, Retrieved from www.gotquestions.org/church-bells.html.
“History of Church Bells.” History of Church Bells – Ancient Church Bells, 1 Apr. 2018,
Retrieved from www.historyofbells.com/bells-history/history-of-Church-bells/.
“Library: Church Bells.” Library: Church Bells | Catholic Culture,1 Apr. 2018, Retrieved from
www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/view.cfm?recnum=3665.
The Church and the Middle Ages, 1 Apr. 2018, Retrieved from
www.csis.pace.edu/grendel/projs2c/middle.html.
“The World’s Favorite Online Dictionary!” Dictionary.com, Dictionary.com, 1 Apr. 2018,
Retrieved from www.dictionary.com/browse.
