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The bells are mounted in the West end tower of All Saints’ Church, Tibenham and the tower contains a ring of six bells which are hung on a level with the louvred openings, 67 feet above ground level. The first recorded reference to the bells are in 1437 when Thomas Tibenham of Norwich left 6s 8d towards new bells. To listen to the bells, click here. It would appear that the bells were originally cast as a ring of six by Osborn but that the treble became cracked and was subsequently recast. An old weight card in the ringing chamber gives the tenor weight as 20 cwts and from information we have on Osborn, from the size of the bell and its frequency, this is probably very close to its actual weight. All the bells were cast with canons upon their heads; those of the treble being the high pattern angular type being typical of Warner’s style whilst those on the other five bells are the more traditional lower rounded type. The purpose of the canons is to suspend the bells from their headstocks by means of strap fixings. Modern practice is to either remove canons (if the bell is not of a great antiquity) or in the case of a new bell cast it with a flat head that is machined and drilled for independent bolt fixings. Such fixings are stronger and more firmer than traditional straps: the shorter the bolt can be kept then the stronger they become. All six bells retain their cast-in iron crownstaples. These are loops of wrought iron that were placed in the head of the bell mould being held in position by molten metal solidifying around them at the time of casting. The purpose of the staple was to carry the old clapper mountings. Unfortunately, such staples are a frequent cause of bells cracking due to the interaction between dissimilar metals and the expansion of the wrought iron in the bell head. These staples should, therefore, be cut away and the bells be drilled with a central stress relieving hole and the remains of the staple stubs to be counter-bored as much as is possible to alleviate the risk of cracking. The three larger bells have been turned through 90 degrees to present new points on their soundbows to the blows of the clappers. As a consequence the clappers are suspended from reversing blocks fitted around the old cast-in iron crownstaples. The three trebles still swing in the original plane in which they were hung. Clapper wear on all six bells is becoming excessive and each bell should be turned to present unworn to the blows of the clapper units. Frequency analysis reveals that the nominal frequency of the tenor bell is 316 Hertz. Based on standard International pitch (A = 440 Hertz) the note of the tenor and hence the keynote of peal is approximately a third of a semitone sharp of D Sharp. This is somewhat deeper than one would normally expect for a bell of this size and supports the fact that its gross weight will err to the low side of 20 cwts rather than the higher side. The tonal analysis of the bells reveals that the five Osborn bells have a very good tonal impact but that their scale relationship is quite erratic. The treble bell is not of good tonal quality in relationship to the other five bells and as it stands it is relatively flat in the nominal or principle frequency and, therefore, does not form a good lead into the peal. Bell Details taken from a 1997
Survey carried out by Whitechapel Bell Foundry Ltd and John Taylor Bellfounders
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