The Flood Bell goes back on display
The Flood Bell is back on display in the River and Mill gallery after six months away for conservation.
The bell was cast in 1652 and hung in a small frame on the Town Quay, where the quay master rang it when the river rose. The borough accounts record it being rung in the floods of 1795 and 1852. It was taken down in 1903 and came to the museum in 1964.
The conservator removed old wax and corrosion, consolidated a crack near the lip and made a new oak headstock. The bell will not be rung again, but the display now includes a recording of a bell of the same size and weight.
The conservation cost £3,960, of which £2,500 came from a grant for small museums and the rest from members’ donations.