Twineham, St Peter
Bell |
Weight |
Diameter |
Nominal |
Note |
Founder |
Cast |
Canon |
Hanging |
1 |
3-1-13 cwt |
25.88" |
1336.5 Hz |
E |
1912 |
Full Circle |
||
2 |
3-3-8 cwt |
27.63" |
1198.5 Hz |
D |
1912 |
Full Circle |
||
3 |
3-2-17 cwt |
27.13" |
1103.5 Hz |
C# |
John Tonne |
1544 |
Full Circle |
|
4 |
4-2-18 cwt |
29.50" |
989 Hz |
B |
John Tonne |
1522 |
Full Circle |
|
5 |
6-3-22 cwt |
34.75" |
893.5 Hz |
A |
1912 |
Full Circle |
About the Bells
5 Bells, 6-3-22 in A
Twineham, St Peter have a full circle ring of 5 hung in a West facing brick tower dating from about 1500. In the 1500s, manufacture of local bricks from clay began. Twineham, used to be a wooden church, built around 1226 but the present day 16th century is build from brick. In fact, Twineham is also the first church in Sussex to have been made out of brick.
When the church was built, the tower had a single bell recast in 1522 by John Tonne. In 1544, a treble was added to make a chime of 2. Then in 1635, a tenor was added by Bryan I Eldridge of Horsham to make a ring of 3. Until the year 1912, the ringers could not do proper change ringing on just 3 bells. An additional 2 trebles were added by Mears & Stainbank of London to make a ring 5. During this, the Eldridge bell was also recast and a ringing gallery was added. A set of 12 hand bells was also gifted to the ringers by the Whitechapel Bell foundry so ringers could practice away from the church.
Until 1960 there was a wooden ladder which began to wear down so a metal one with see through steps replaced the wooden one. The bells were also restored at this time gifted by Alan H R Shout and William G Ellis.
Another bit of history on the bells is that a peal was rung in 2016 for the 500th anniversary consecration of the church: View Here
The ringing room has a frame on the west wall that has some plaster moulds of the inscriptions on bells 3 & 4 which also gives some information on them. Two medieval clappers hang below these, presumably from the same bells.
The bells are rung clockwise by red, white & blue sallied ropes.
Access to the belfry is rather fun. First you have to prop the ladder against the North wall, climb up and push the hatch to the right, which is very stiff. You then carry the ladder round and extend it. When you climb up into the belfry, you must be careful you don't hit your head on the soundbow of the 3rd as it is directly above you.
The belfry is very cozy and the tower has no louvres. Instead it has holes in the North, South and West wall with a vertical and horizontal bar behind bird proof mesh.
A long LED strip light provides great lighting in the belfry. On the Southern wall in the belfry, 2 old wheels are present and 5 clapper silencers dating from 1912 lie there too. After mentioning about the clapper stays to one of the ringers, they say they use ropes to tie them and were not aware they had a full set of 5 old silencers up there. Unfortunately the old clapper silencers can't be used as they're in a very fragile condition.
Bells 1,2 and 5 have a Doncaster Head where as 3 and 4 have their original 6 looped conventional canon.
All bells except the treble have wheel stays. Oliver Watson, ringer from Lindfield reported that: "The treble's wheel had some work done on it since I last rang there because the old wheel was warped causing the rope to slip wheel often."
During my investigation today, the treble appears to have a completely new wheel.
The bells are hung in a timber Z trussed frame clockwise with the treble hung in the South West side of the tower. The frame was made by Mears & Stainbank.
I don't add turning information on the data above as it doesn't give too much on the bells themselves but 3 & 4 are the only bells that have been turned: they've been quarter turned.
Visited:
.19/04/2022
Twineham, St Peter have a full circle ring of 5 hung in a West facing brick tower dating from about 1500. In the 1500s, manufacture of local bricks from clay began. Twineham, used to be a wooden church, built around 1226 but the present day 16th century is build from brick. In fact, Twineham is also the first church in Sussex to have been made out of brick.
When the church was built, the tower had a single bell recast in 1522 by John Tonne. In 1544, a treble was added to make a chime of 2. Then in 1635, a tenor was added by Bryan I Eldridge of Horsham to make a ring of 3. Until the year 1912, the ringers could not do proper change ringing on just 3 bells. An additional 2 trebles were added by Mears & Stainbank of London to make a ring 5. During this, the Eldridge bell was also recast and a ringing gallery was added. A set of 12 hand bells was also gifted to the ringers by the Whitechapel Bell foundry so ringers could practice away from the church.
Until 1960 there was a wooden ladder which began to wear down so a metal one with see through steps replaced the wooden one. The bells were also restored at this time gifted by Alan H R Shout and William G Ellis.
Another bit of history on the bells is that a peal was rung in 2016 for the 500th anniversary consecration of the church: View Here
The ringing room has a frame on the west wall that has some plaster moulds of the inscriptions on bells 3 & 4 which also gives some information on them. Two medieval clappers hang below these, presumably from the same bells.
The bells are rung clockwise by red, white & blue sallied ropes.
Access to the belfry is rather fun. First you have to prop the ladder against the North wall, climb up and push the hatch to the right, which is very stiff. You then carry the ladder round and extend it. When you climb up into the belfry, you must be careful you don't hit your head on the soundbow of the 3rd as it is directly above you.
The belfry is very cozy and the tower has no louvres. Instead it has holes in the North, South and West wall with a vertical and horizontal bar behind bird proof mesh.
A long LED strip light provides great lighting in the belfry. On the Southern wall in the belfry, 2 old wheels are present and 5 clapper silencers dating from 1912 lie there too. After mentioning about the clapper stays to one of the ringers, they say they use ropes to tie them and were not aware they had a full set of 5 old silencers up there. Unfortunately the old clapper silencers can't be used as they're in a very fragile condition.
Bells 1,2 and 5 have a Doncaster Head where as 3 and 4 have their original 6 looped conventional canon.
All bells except the treble have wheel stays. Oliver Watson, ringer from Lindfield reported that: "The treble's wheel had some work done on it since I last rang there because the old wheel was warped causing the rope to slip wheel often."
During my investigation today, the treble appears to have a completely new wheel.
The bells are hung in a timber Z trussed frame clockwise with the treble hung in the South West side of the tower. The frame was made by Mears & Stainbank.
I don't add turning information on the data above as it doesn't give too much on the bells themselves but 3 & 4 are the only bells that have been turned: they've been quarter turned.
Visited:
.19/04/2022
Inscriptions:
*Underlined text is inscriptions within the inscription band*
*Text in blue is on the opposite side of the bell*
*Text in blue is on the opposite side of the bell*
1635 - Present
1 |
MEARS & STAINBANK, FOUNDERS LONDON VENITE ADOREMUS, ET PROCIDAMUS: ET PLOREMUS ANTE DOMINUM, QUI FECIT NOS 1912 ⌾ |
2 |
MEARS & STAINBANK, FOUNDERS LONDON 1912 LAUDATE EUM IN CAMPANIS BENE SONANTIBUS LAUDATE EUM IN CAMPANIS JUBILATIONS ⌾ |
3 |
⌺ 𝕴𝖓 ♣ 𝖒𝖚𝖑𝖙𝖎𝖘 ♠ 𝖆𝖓𝖓𝖎𝖘 ♣ 𝖓𝖔𝖒𝖊𝖓 ♠ 𝖇𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖊 ♣ 𝖎𝖔𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖓𝖎𝖘 ♰ |
4 |
ↈↈↈↈↈↈↈ ⌺ 𝖍𝖔𝖈 ♣ 𝖒𝖎𝖈𝖍𝖎 ♣ 𝖎𝖆𝖒 ♠ 𝖗𝖊𝖙𝖗𝖔 ♣ 𝖓𝖔𝖒𝖊𝖓 ♠ 𝖉𝖊 ♣ 𝖘𝖎𝖒𝖔𝖓𝖊 ♠ 𝖕𝖊𝖙𝖗𝖔 ♰ ◉ |
5 |
GLORIA ♡ DEO ♡ IN ♡ EXCELSIS 1635 B 🔔 E RECAST 1912 R.W.Mc.KERGOW J. LESLIE SMITH }CHURCHWARDENS MEARS & STAINBANK LONDON ⌾ |
1635 - 1912
1 |
⌺ 𝕴𝖓 ♣ 𝖒𝖚𝖑𝖙𝖎𝖘 ♠ 𝖆𝖓𝖓𝖎𝖘 ♣ 𝖓𝖔𝖒𝖊𝖓 ♠ 𝖇𝖆𝖕𝖙𝖎𝖘𝖙𝖊 ♣ 𝖎𝖔𝖍𝖆𝖓𝖓𝖎𝖘 ♰ |
2 |
ↈↈↈↈↈↈↈ ⌺ 𝖍𝖔𝖈 ♣ 𝖒𝖎𝖈𝖍𝖎 ♣ 𝖎𝖆𝖒 ♠ 𝖗𝖊𝖙𝖗𝖔 ♣ 𝖓𝖔𝖒𝖊𝖓 ♠ 𝖉𝖊 ♣ 𝖘𝖎𝖒𝖔𝖓𝖊 ♠ 𝖕𝖊𝖙𝖗𝖔 ♰ ◉ |
3 |
GLORIA ♡ DEO ♡ IN ♡ EXCELSIS 1635 B 🔔 E |
Latin Translation:
1: VENITE ADOREMUS, ET PROCIDAMUS: ET PLOREMUSANTE DOMINUM, QUI FECIT NOS 1912 - Come, let us worship and fall down and weep before the lord, who made us 1912
2: LAUDATE EUM IN CAMPANIS BENE SONANTIBUS LAUDATE EUM IN CAMPANIS JUBILATIONS - Praise him wit the bells ringing, praise him with the bells jubilations
3: In multis annis nomen baptiste iohannis - In many years the name of John the baptist
4: hoc michi iam retro nomen de simone petro - Here I am again rechristened Peter
5: GLORIA DEO IN EXELSIS - Glory to god in the highest
1: VENITE ADOREMUS, ET PROCIDAMUS: ET PLOREMUSANTE DOMINUM, QUI FECIT NOS 1912 - Come, let us worship and fall down and weep before the lord, who made us 1912
2: LAUDATE EUM IN CAMPANIS BENE SONANTIBUS LAUDATE EUM IN CAMPANIS JUBILATIONS - Praise him wit the bells ringing, praise him with the bells jubilations
3: In multis annis nomen baptiste iohannis - In many years the name of John the baptist
4: hoc michi iam retro nomen de simone petro - Here I am again rechristened Peter
5: GLORIA DEO IN EXELSIS - Glory to god in the highest
⌾ = Fig. AH, 2 (Bell 1,5)
♰ = Fig. XVIII,a (Bell 3,4)
♠ = Fig. XVIII,b (Bells 3,4)
♣ = Fig. XVIII,c (Bells 3,4)
⌺ = Fig. XIX,c (Bells 3,4)
◉ = Fig. XIX, a (Bell 4)
ↈ = Fig. XIX,h (Bell 4)
♡ = Fig. BRE,1 (Bell 5)
🔔 = Fig. AH, 1 (Bell 5)
*Click on images to enlarge them*
♰ = Fig. XVIII,a (Bell 3,4)
♠ = Fig. XVIII,b (Bells 3,4)
♣ = Fig. XVIII,c (Bells 3,4)
⌺ = Fig. XIX,c (Bells 3,4)
◉ = Fig. XIX, a (Bell 4)
ↈ = Fig. XIX,h (Bell 4)
♡ = Fig. BRE,1 (Bell 5)
🔔 = Fig. AH, 1 (Bell 5)
*Click on images to enlarge them*
Photographs:
