Anatomy of Bells

Post date: Oct 15, 2015 3:4:23 PM

On the top of the bell there is typically a wooden crossbeam called a yoke that the bell is attached to. The connecting piece is known as the crown. Commonly made of metal, the crown can be directly attached to the yoke, or the bell can dangle with the crown being tied to a series of leather straps. As shown bellow connected to the crown of the bell is the head and shoulder section of the bell. This section is tuned to resonate one octave higher than the hum, or main note. The main section of the bell is referred to as the waist. This is the largest section of the bell and is tuned to resonate at a fifth, or quint, of the hum tone. The bottom section of the bell where the flare begins is known as the sound bow. This section is attached to the lip, the very bottom of the bell, and is responsible for the generation of the hum tone. The open bottom of the bell is the mouth. Within the mouth of the bell can be seen the clapper, which is usually a metal rod attached to a metal ball. The clapper hangs free from the shell of the bell so as to invoke independent movements.

Anatomy of a Standard Bell Anatomy of Standard Bell with A-Frame Supports