The anchor chain of the "Roald Amundsen" rattles loudly into the depths, watched closely by bosun Karlo Schreiber, who operates the winch on the foredeck of the brig. As the first capsize shackle - the thicker, bolted chain link that connects two lengths of chain - emerges from the chain locker, he strikes the ship's bell, which is attached close to the winch, once. In this way, he indicates to the captain that the first 27.5 metres of chain have been attached. To this day, this is not only done on traditional ships, but also on commercial vessels. The next shackle runs out and Schreiber rings the bell again.
That is also interesting:
Bronze bells were already being made in Asia 2000 years before our era. In Europe, Celtic monks spread wrought-iron hand bells from the fifth century onwards. Bells later also found their way on board ships. "Initially for liturgical purposes," explains Albrecht Sauer, Head of the Nautical Department at the German Maritime Museum in Bremerhaven.
No wonder, as the early seafarers were usually very religious - if only because of the many imponderables and dangers they faced at sea. "Bells were also used for signalling purposes from ship to ship," continues Sauer. Trading companies such as the Dutch East India Company finally standardised the equipment on their ships in the 16th century. Sauer: "From then on, the bell was part of the standard equipment."
Ship's bells today mostly decoration
Essentially, the ship's bell had or has three functions: The bell was used to announce the time during glazing, when anchoring manoeuvres were carried out, the foreship crew indicated the length of the deployed chain, and when anchoring in mist or fog, other ships were and are warned. The bell was therefore usually located on the forecastle, close to the anchor capstan and within reach of the lookout. On larger ships, a second, smaller bell on the wheelhouse or near the bridge was usually used to sound the bell.
On most sailing yachts these days, there is only a small ship's bell hanging in the saloon - if at all. And that's for decoration or, at best, to call the crew together for a drink or a meal. After all: "Ship's bells are actually mainly bought by owners who want to install them on their yacht. Or at home to talk to visitors about their own boat," reports Jörn Maschewski. The online retailer specialising in maritime products runs Navigator Handels GmbH, which he founded with Captain Volker Melzer in Seevetal near Hamburg.
"We primarily sell ship's bells for decorative purposes. But we also have BSH-approved bells in our range. The number of bells ordered each year is in the four-digit range," explains salesman Maschewski. Around 40 per cent of the pieces are now chrome-plated instead of the classic brass look. "And every fourth bell is ordered with an engraving."
Still up to date?
Marlene and Bert Frisch's bell reads "Heimkehr VII", the name of their fishing cutter-like ketch, which they regularly use for challenging ocean voyages. "For me, the ship's bell is traditionally an indispensable piece of equipment on board," says Bert Frisch. "To do without it would be a kind of disregard for the soul of the ship." However, he then adds that although the bell is BSH-approved, it does not hang on deck, but in the wheelhouse. "I've never signalled with it at anchor or in fog. Electronic aids such as radar, AIS and radio offer much more safety in such situations."
Other sailors have little use even for a bell as a decorative object on board. Udo Schallenberg, for example, says: "A ship's bell on a modern yacht is an anachronism. It only adds unnecessary weight." That's why he removed the ship's bell installed by the previous owner on his previous yacht. "Its ringing in rough seas was constantly annoying," says the equally experienced coastal and ocean sailor. Schallenberg has thus taken the wind out of the sails of at least one superstition: In the past, sailors interpreted a ship's bell that rang without human intervention as a death omen.
Legal regulations on ship's bells
And Schallenberg did not violate any existing laws and regulations when he banned the bell from the ship. According to the Collision Prevention Regulations (KVR), this has only been mandatory for large ships over 20 metres in length since 2003. In the original version of the COLREGs from 1972, however, every ship over twelve metres in length had to be equipped with a bell in addition to a whistle.
Today, however, only the permanently installed sound signalling system - usually a typhoon - is mandatory for this size of ship, which is referred to by the confusing term "whistle". For all yachts under twelve metres in length, however, the classic horn, i.e. the handy foghorn that is blown by mouth, is sufficient.
The technical details of the sound signalling systems for vehicles are set out in Annex III of the KVR. For example, the bell prescribed for vehicles over 20 metres in length must "produce a sound pressure level of at least 110 decibels at a distance of one metre". It also states: "Bells and gongs must be made of corrosion-resistant material and emit a clear tone. The diameter of the bell mouth must (...) be at least 30 centimetres."
In Germany, the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency (BSH) monitors compliance with the required material and sound quality. As an engineer for physical navigation equipment, Stefan Ruff is responsible for type testing and approvals. "With its unmistakable sound, the bell can be clearly distinguished from the typhoon," says Ruff, explaining why different sound signalling devices should or must be on board. And he mentions another advantage: "If the entire electrical system fails, the bell, which according to the KVR must be operated manually, remains operational."
Different types of ship's bells
Ship bells have been manufactured using the sand casting process for centuries. Lighter bells are made using brass die-casting, large church bells made of bronze using the clay moulding process. Older people have already heard about this in school while reading Schiller's "Lied von der Glocke".
Frank Bauer is the fourth generation of his family to run the Ludwig and Georg Bauer bell foundry in Nuremberg, which was founded in 1880. Together with his father Georg, the 55-year-old produces any size of bell from three to 50 centimetres in diameter. The range includes Swiss cattle bells, bells for assemblies, Tyrolean bells, souvenir bells to commemorate famous church bell consecrations, jester bells for the Swabian carnival or Parisian bells for horse harnesses. And, of course, signalling bells for ships. Decades ago, the Bauers received their type approval from the former German Hydrographic Institute (DHI). The approval was taken over by the BSH in 1990.
The products from Nuremberg go to ship chandlers in Germany and the Netherlands. The largest ones weigh 60 kilograms and cost just over 2,000 euros. "We used to cast a large 50-centimetre bell every week for a shipping company, for tankers for example," says Frank Bauer. Today, a bell like this is only ever sent to a mission somewhere far away. Even of the KVR-compliant 30-centimetre version, the Bauers only cast around 15 per year. Only after one of the few other remaining foundries in this country, Kunstguss Harms in Oldenburg, Lower Saxony, ceased operations in 2017, did the Bauers once again produce around 60 medium-sized ship's bells per year.
When a bell has had its day
From time immemorial, the name of the ship and its year of construction were usually immortalised on the bell. When a ship was decommissioned, a crew member would often take the bell home as a souvenir. As a result, today you can find countless examples in numerous harbour offices, pubs and restaurants decorated in a maritime style, in the rooms of sailing clubs and, of course, in museums.
One of the most famous ship's bells is that of the frigate "Lutine", which sank in 1799. Since it was salvaged in 1858, it has hung on a pedestal in the Underwriting Room at Lloyd's in London, the world's first and largest marine insurer. Traditionally, the bell used to be rung once when a ship was lost and twice when a ship believed to be lost reappeared. Today, Lloyd's only rings the bell on special occasions, such as the death of a member of the British royal family.
Every owner of a conventional yacht can decide for themselves whether the ship's bell belongs in a museum or whether it still has its rightful place on board. In case of doubt, it is a safety advantage if you should unexpectedly find yourself in thick fog.
Areas of application for ship's bells
1. time announcement: To whom the hour strikes - the glass
In the classic three-watch system, the first four-hour watch begins at 00:00. The glass hourglass took 30 minutes to complete one cycle. At 00:30, the ship's bell was rung once and then the hourglass was turned round. After the first hour of the watch, the bell was rung twice (as a double strike). One stroke was added every half hour. At the end of the first watch, the lookout or helmsman of this watch struck "eight glasses", four double strokes. This marked the start of the second watch, in which the bells were rung again at 04:30.
2. length measurement: What the bell is used for when anchoring
Unlike in pleasure craft, where the length of the anchor chain is given in metres, the term shackle or chain length is still used as a unit of measurement in commercial shipping. This utilises the fact that anchor chains consist of several sections of equal length, which are connected to each other using capsize shackles. The length of the sections, i.e. the shackle or chain length, varies from country to country. In 1910, Eduard Krieger wrote in his "Johows Hilfsbuch für den Schiffbau" that a shackle measures 21.95 metres in England, 25 metres in Germany and even 30 metres in France. The Italian shackle is widely used, even on traditional German ships such as the brig "Roald Amundsen": 27.5 metres. The bell is struck once for each shackle run out.
3. alarm system: warn of danger with the bell
Vessels over 20 metres in length must ring the bell rapidly for at least five seconds every minute when anchored in haze or fog. A vessel that is aground must also sound three sharply separated chimes before and after the rapid bell ringing. There are also other bell warning signals in inland navigation.
Production of a bell
Historic ship's bells
Numerous bells from famous ships can be found in collections and museums today. A selection.
- In the Island museum on Spiekeroog depends on the Bell of the barque "Johanne"which sank off the East Frisian island on her maiden voyage in 1854. In June 2019, she was last used for the Carolinensiel ship prayer service. The service has been held regularly since 1997, after two crew members lost their lives when the rescue cruiser "Alfried Krupp" capsized in a bottomless sea on 2 January 1995. The bell was rung five times for each continent - in memory of the 187 ships lost in the previous year.
- Known around the world - and offered for sale thousands of times as a small imitation
is the ship's bell from the passenger liner "Titanic", which sank in 1912. It was salvaged from a depth of 3,800 metres and is on display in a travelling exhibition with other artefacts from the ill-fated ship. More information: https://rmstitanicinc.com/exhibitions/ - The German Maritime Museum (DSM) in Bremerhaven is now home to around 60 ship's bells. More information: www.dsm.museum
- In Apolda in Thuringia and in Gescher in Westphalia, there are Bell museums. In these, however, ship bells play only a minor role alongside the much larger bronze church bells. More information: https://glockenmuseum-apolda.de/; www.glockenmuseum-gescher.de
